Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa
by KoopalingFan
Summary: SPOILERS FROM "SURVIVOR - EMPERORS VS KNIGHTS" STARTING FROM CHAPTER 26) For ten of the twenty contestants, their dream of earning the title of Sole Survivor has reached its end as they were unfortunately eliminated from the game, but made it just enough to be part of a ten person jury. These are their personal reflections, thoughts, and emotions about the game that they've played.
1. Chapter 1: Juror 1

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 1 - Juror #1

**Hello, guys. Now before I get things started with this, for those of you who still don't know, if you are reading this right now without even reading Emperors vs Knights up until chapter 26, this will include major spoilers so I highly suggest you turn back now.**

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**But for those of you who did read up to that point, welcome to the Ponderosa fic of "Survivor - Emperors vs Knights!" So there will be ten members of the jury like last time, and each member of the jury is going to reflect their thoughts on the game that they've played as well as their overall feelings about their Survivor experience as they generally try their best to enjoy themselves. So whoever gets voted out in the jury phase gets to have an entire chapter all about them.**

**And now since we have our first member of the jury, I guess it's officially time to get this show on the road over here.**

**~KF**

* * *

"_Hi, everyone. I'm Shulk, juror number one, and this is my Ponderosa. ...__**Now**_ _it's Shulk time, hahaha!"_

* * *

**Night 21**

* * *

Xenoblade Chronicles character, Shulk, was now out of the Tribal Council area, staring striaght ahead as he continued to walk along the path.

"Guess it was just my turn to get blindsided, so I guess that's that. I just didn't expect the voting result to turn out the way it did…"

"_Well, here I am. I'm now at Ponderosa and officially no longer in the running for the title of Sole Survivor. I mean, I guess I'm out for some reason. I really thought that it'd be a 7-6 vote for either one of the alliances, but instead it ended up being a 5-4-4. So while I was walking, I did quick math…"_

"Greninja's name was supposed to come up at least six times, but instead his name only came up four times. _My_ name came up five times and then Freddy's name came up four times. So that means that an emperor's name was written down _nine_ times." Shulk all of a sudden tripped over a branch. "Woah! ….Hahaha! Didn't see that coming…"

"_So I thought that if Greninja's name only came up four times and an emperor's name came up nine times, let alone the two of us having our names written down, that means that two people flipped and helped vote me out."_

"I mean, I didn't even have to think that hard to tell. I took a look at my tribe, Zelda, Marth, and Roy were just as shocked as I am. Shadow and Freddy jumped off a now sinking ship and I guess they're the two managers that the knights want to work with… I mean, I don't know why they flipped, but for whatever reason, I guess it was for their best interests. Good for them, I guess… I just hope the rest of my alliance hangs in there, since if Shadow and Freddy are solid where they are now, it's 9-3… _Yikes_…"

"_Sure, I knew very well that there was always the chance that I could be on the bottom, but I never expected it to be like this. But,... I guess no matter what happened, now I gotta deal with it. I'm going to be the Emperor of Ponderosa for the next eighteen days, so even though my dreams are crushed, it's still not a total loss, and that's the best part…"_

Just up ahead of Shulk was a black medical tent that was waiting for his arrival. And upon getting inside, Shulk got to reunite with Master Hand's brother after already paying him a visit pre-season.

"Hello, Shulk!" Crazy Hand greeted. "Congrats on making it out here for twenty-one days! You are now officially the first member of the jury! ...How does it feel?"

"Ugh… _Well_,..." Shulk sat in a nearby black chair as he collected his thoughts. "I guess making it to the jury is still a big accomplishment. Getting into the game alone is a huge accomplishment since you're going to be on… _universal_ television. So making it this far also means a lot, since not only you've made it a bit more than halfway through, but being on the jury, you are still a part of the game, especially when I get the biggest job of all at the end…"

"_Naturally I feel disappointed only because I wanted to make it all the way, or at least just a little bit further than thirteenth place, but if fate wanted me to go out this way, then that's the way the ship sails sometimes…"_

"Step on the scale for me…"

And so he did after removing his shoes.

"123.4…" He blinked.

"And before this adventure started, you weighed at exactly 133.6 pounds, which means that over the course of twenty-one days you were on the island, you lost exactly…" Crazy Hand did the necessary calculations. "10.2 pounds, Shulk!"

"Not too much, not too little… I guess I'm okay with that…"

"_Lost a pretty decent amount of weight. Thought I lost a bit more, but not too bad… I'm still gonna eat, though. Guess for the next three days I'm gonna have the whole place to myself. I'm gonna eat and then finally take a shower, and off to bed I go."_

"Thanks again!:

Shulk got off the boat and he walked across the dock and to the stairs of the Ponderosa Cafe, taking his time walking in.

"...Hmmm… There should be some sort of mirror somewhere…" His eyes scanned the area. "...Aha!"

Now it was time for Shulk to take a good look at himself. Believe it or not, he had actually began to grow facial hair, specifically a small beard being visible, as well as him having more hair on his head of course.

"...What!?" He gasped. "I was growing a beard all this time and nobody told me anything!? ...I… Woah!"

"_I never even thought of growing a beard, hahaha! Maybe when my friends look at this they will probably be weirded out and think that I'm like some caveman or something. I've __**never**_ _grown a beard before!"_

He then removed his shirt. "...A little hairy on the chest as well…"

-/-

Minutes later, Shulk was starting to receive the food he ordered.

"_Alright, so obviously the food is arguably the best part of the Ponderosa. You're hungry and tired, worrying to yourself that maybe you won't get a certain reward. ...I mean, I've never had one food reward at all. One day short of missing out on the first reward challenge post-merge. But if anything, it's good now since I get to eat all I want and never worry about being hungry again!"_

There was sushi, pizza, a cheeseburger, and french fries all right in front of him. The heir to the Monado even planned on ordering dessert.

"Oh, I'm about to gain my 10.2 pounds back in _no_ time…" He rubbed his hands together.

And judging by his pace, without a doubt he was having the time of his life. "Sure, I should feel sad because my friends are still out there about to be soaking wet who knows when, eating rice and coconut and sleeping in a shelter like that back at the camp, but… nine of them are gonna be voted out at some point, anyway, haha! And if I like those people, I should leave them in."

-/-

Shulk was now finished with his food for tonight and was on his way to a small house nearby.

"So now I'm gonna see what this house looks like on the inside, I'm gonna shower, brush my teeth, and finally get a good night's sleep after three weeks."

"_I think that I'll look back at this whole thing as my dream finally becoming true after so long. Even when I realized that I was finally old enough to actually apply for the show, I knew that there were limitations on who would go, but apparently not so much anymore. This adventure means everything to me. And even though it's unfortunate that it has to be cut short like this, all I can do is appreciate how much time I've spent out there, since seven people got voted out before me, so… I guess I should be happy that I at least made it to this stage in the game, and for what my game was."_

"Sweet…"

From looking in his room to find the rest of his belongings from removing his shirt once again as he got ready for his shower, one could tell that Shulk was rather excited of what Ponderosa had to bring to him in spite of him knowing that he had just been voted out of the tribe.

* * *

**Day 22**

* * *

The next day, it was rather cloudy outside, and Shulk just so happened to be taking a glance up at the sky.

"...Aaaand it's gonna rain today." He concluded with a blink. "I can just _tell_…"

And within five minutes later, it was already beginning to sprinkle. Though of course it never stopped Shulk from having his breakfast for that day.

"Nothing like french toast in the morning." He showed the camera his meal. "Three of 'em. And adding eggs and bacon wouldn't hurt… Maybe I should've thrown some hashbrowns in it…"

"_I still can't believe that there is so much food here, I'm surprised I haven't blown up right now… I think I already gained my 10.2 pounds back from yesterday, haha! I mean, you can't just stop eating. I'm not trying to be a glutton for anything, but for Survivor culture, eating every two seconds is literally normal around here. So whoever's at Ponderosa in later seasons, __**please**_ _don't be ashamed at all and __**never**_ _hold back."_

Thus, he began weight lifting and exercising after nearly an hour later.

"Okay, so it was sprinkling for a little bit, but now it's officially raining." He said in between sit ups. "Not that it is any big of a deal, since I'm actually more of an indoor person anyway doing my research about this game and other things, so I'm good. Cumulonimbus clouds aren't gonna ruin my first official day here. But since I don't have a laptop or anything, I guess I can spend some time reflecting…"

"_I mean sure this is the umpteenth time it's rained this season, but at least I'm not at the shelter with eleven other strangers hearing them complain. Being soaked and wet while you're still sleeping outside and worrying if your shelter is gonna stay strong or not isn't exactly relaxing to say the least."_

Though it seemed as if all Shulk was doing was staring at the rain as it poured outside of the cafe, he was actually lost in his own thoughts.

"_So for quite some time, I have been thinking about not just me being in the game, but the position in the game I was in. I was classified as an emperor. At first I thought that I fit more of the 'knight' role, because I'm generally used to helping others. If they're in trouble, I get in trouble with them and together we figure a way out of whatever situation we're in. ...But I guess over time, maybe I'm perceived to be the leader of it all. People do in fact call me a hero back where I'm from. ...And to that I say that all I want to do is to do the right thing. When I see my friends in tough situations, I try my best to help them out. We're all in this together… and I guess that's the main reason to why I was an emperor in this game."_

"_I was trying to help my alliance break those knights, and then I would have continued to help them as much as I could, but I just made it to the first post-merge Tribal Council. But I know if I was in there longer I definitely would have helped all of them out a little more. Clearly I'm the opposite of a quitter. ...Though despite not making it deep enough to where I had a big enough of an opportunity to do something, at least I helped as much as I could with my tribe with the shelter. And even thought that I was getting to the point to where I was being carried away…"_

Apparently since a couple members of the staff found out that Shulk was a Survivor fan that loved to research about the game, they decided to recommend to him a book of 'The Boston Robbery Rulebook', about a contestant from one of the most well known castaways in the history of the show. And of course, Shulk was more than excited to check it out, judging by the extremely focused look on his face as he flipped through pages while it continued to rain.

"...Hopefully Robbery will notice this so I can meet him someday…"

"_The people I was around with at the time was there for me and I was there for them. We related to each other well and we all enjoyed ourselves by doing everything we could and wanted on the show. And if I was supposed to be the sacrifice so they can remain in the game longer, then so be it. Hopefully one of them wins. I'll just stay here and continue to read this book about this particular Survivor legend that can teach anyone great advice about the game and how to maneuver yourself through it."_

"...You're saying that I can keep this?" A shocked Shulk was interacting with one of the members of the production crew. "Sweet! Thanks! Now I get to go back home and have a show and tell in front of everyone!"

"_I mean, sorry if I seem like some sort of 'Survivor nerd' or something, but __**man**_… _I have such love for this game. Whether either watching at home, or coming out here in person. ...Though I'll admit, I wasn't a day one fan. I started watching since Tocantins and then I just watched all of the other seasons. So for anyone that is watching this and if you are in a very similar position I'm in and you're interested in applying for the show, nothing is impossible. It doesn't matter what world you are from. Just send it that video and apply, and __**trust**_ _me. You'll really love it out here! ...I mean, it's not exactly sunny at the moment, but you get the point!"_

* * *

**Alright, so there you have it. The first chapter of this side fic is now completed and today was all about Shulk. I was going to end it a little bit earlier, but I felt to add something more so I decided to have Shulk go into detail about him being a superfan and what it feels like knowing what world he was in and him initially thinking that he had little to no chance of making it in, and look at him now lol. (BTW for those of you that don't know "Robbery" is a fictional version to four time Survivor player, Rob Mariano "Boston Rob", one of Survivor's legends who's first season was Season 4's Survivor - Marquesas.)**

**Questions:**

**1\. What do you think about Shulk's game?**

**2\. Do you think that in an alternative timeline, Shulk could have somehow won the game? If not, how far do you think he would have gotten?**

**If you liked Shulk you can vote for him on the poll on my profile. I'll see you all next time for the next juror when we officially have our second member of the jury for this season!**


	2. Chapter 2: Juror 2

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 2 - Juror 2

**Okay, time for the next chapter in "Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa", and now it is Roy's turn following Shulk's. I'm more interested in Roy's views of his game because if I were to pick and choose between Roy and Shulk, I'd choose Roy, since I feel he would be higher on my character rankings by the time the season is done (hey, I still love Shulk, too)!**

**So this time, since Shulk is no longer going to be the only castaway at Ponderosa, now we get to have one on one conversations between him and Roy. Let's see how these two emperors interact…**

**~KF**

* * *

**Night 24**

* * *

"Well, it's official. Roy has officially been voted out of Survivor. Now I can prove to people that I've actually been on the show."

The Young Lion was making his way along the path as he headed towards the tent.

"I had one last ditch attempt to shift the target to somebody else for the night, though I suppose everyone wanted to stick with their initial plan." He assumed. "Marth played the idol, they thought that Zelda was not much of a threat, and I was the secondary target. Good on them, I suppose. I really do hope those two hang in there. Both of them deserve to win this game…"

"_If I was not going to win this season, then perhaps it was meant to be. Everything happens for a reason. Maybe this experience was meant to teach me something just like for everyone else. And I have learned a lot from the past three weeks. But what I learned the most is that Survivor will always have a place in my heart as long as I live."_

"Let's see what's in here…" Roy was now in the same tent as Shulk was where he reunited with Crazy Hand. "Hello there!"

"Hi, Roy!" Master Hand's brother happily greeted. "You are just in time for your check up! How is your body feeling right now?"

"Pretty good, I'm supposed. I did have a minor injury on my right arm, but I'm alright…"

"Okay." He 'nodded.' "Well, we're gonna take a good look at that, and then I'm gonna get your blood pressure, and then I'm gonna have you step on the scale for me."

"Sounds like a plan…"

"_Not exactly used to this um… 'technical procedure' Crazy Hand does. Let's just say I have a lot to learn when it comes to technology…"_

"Alright, Roy. Step on the scale for me, would ya?"

"It'd be my pleasure…"

Upon him stepping on it, he stared down between his feet eyeing the number that was shown.

"...What does it say?"

"127.2…" Roy blinked. "Wait a minute, I was almost 140 when I first started!"

"You weighed at 138.2 before you started your Survivor adventure, which means that you've lost exactly eleven pounds."

"_Woah_…" He was near speechless to say the least.

"_So I've lost quite a bit of weight. Forget exercising to lose weight. Just compete on Survivor and you're good to go… But clearly I didn't even need to lose weight, though my objective is obviously the exact opposite. Food is my main priority at this moment besides sleeping somewhere comfortable..."_

"Okay…" The Young Lion got off the scale. "So _now_ what do we do?"

-/-

"Alright, then. Thanks a lot!"

"Roy, hurry and get over here!"

"Shulk!?" The boy ended up running across the dock and towards the stairs.

"_Even though I wanted Roy to stay in, I could not have waited to talk to him." Shulk smirked out of anticipation. "He lasted three days more than I did, so I wanted to hear all about it by letting him tell from his point of view of what happened within the three days I've been gone. We were in the same alliance so he knew more than I did. But first, I had to show him the mirror. He did looked quite dirty indeed. His hair all messed up and everything, hahaha! He'll probably get all fancied up when we all go to the reunion."_

And with one look, Roy turned on his heel and headed for the table, causing Shulk to literally laughed out loud.

"Don't feel too bad, Roy! I felt the same way!"

The eating session officially commenced as Roy was chowing down on a couple egg rolls, ignoring the rest of the food in front of him initially.

Shulk, however, already had another topic in mind that he knew his new friend was going to bring up anyway. "Um, I don't wanna ruin your mood or anything, but I just wanna make sure. You were the original plan all along, right?"

"Yup." He spoke between bites. "Zelda is clearly not the type to win immunity challenges even though she almost won the last one. And then to top it all off, not only everyone was scared to death of Marth's idol, they thought that me and him were a pair… I didn't understand at first, but eventually he became my number one ally, and that was much too threatening. I didn't know if it was one hundred percent going to be either me or Zelda, but the bottom line is that everyone including Marth himself knew that he wasn't going anywhere."

"So your last minute plan was to throw Shadow under the bus for his rep?"

"It was the only thing we could do at the time. We didn't want to write down Greninja again because we thought that would have caused us to be even more untrustworthy with the knights, giving them just enough reasons to vote us off. Even though at times we had to play like the knights for the Ghirahim vote for example, times like that, we had to live up to our own name just to get by. It didn't work, but hey, at least it was worth a try, right?"

He nodded with a smile. "Good to hear. You're taking things rather well."

"Well,..." That time Roy took a moment to pause and think for a moment. "I've learned a lot today. It took me until I realized that I could be in danger to be voted out to finally get to know some of the people on the island a little more. I'm glad I wasn't blindsided, because I would have had even more unanswered questions. But I bonded with Knuckles and Luigi, even Freddy in spite of our differences."

"Wait… you bonded with _Knuckles_?"

"He's been kinda tame lately…"

"I know that, but I didn't expect the both of you to have something in common."

"I didn't either, but we're both very young and we had to deal with unique circumstances unlike most people of our age." He explained. "As a result, me and Knuckles had a perfect understanding of what it's like accomplishing such big tasks in spite of our age. ...I guess in some cases age really is such a number."

"Can't agree more." Shulk nodded with a shrug, stuffing a piece of chicken in his mouth. "Seems like you really wanted to make more connections with the people out there at least before you got voted off."

"And that's what I did. Even though I'm obviously sad that I'm out of the game,... at least it's safe to say that I feel just a bit happier. I have no hard feelings to anyone, not even Shadow even though I don't agree with everything he says. But if this is already the end of my Survivor run, I really lived it to the fullest throughout the past few days."

"_Roy is such a great young guy. Even though I'm clearly young myself, Roy knew that he was going to be the youngest person out there, and with the position he was in, no doubt he ended up being placed on the __**Emperors **__tribe. And I really think that he used it to his advantage, and he really took the time to get to know people and make new friends under all the strategy and chaos that's going on. I think people need to realize that these are game bots you're playing with. We're actual, real people with real human emotions, thoughts, and feelings. So I'm really glad Roy understood that, because knowing where he stood in the game, he used it to his advantage to basically state his farewells. Not that he was giving up, but he just wanted to take advantage of the remaining time he had out there. I mean, I'm not that much older than he is, but maybe to help him out even more, perhaps I can give him some advice."_

"I mean, I can't tell you how much it really means to make real connections with people, even though you don't agree with everybody says. Though obviously, this is Survivor where you have to interact with literally everybody."

"And over time, I did just that, even though it wasn't my intention to just talk to increase my chances of staying on the island." Roy wanted to make himself clear. "It was just to bond with people knowing that we're all basically in the same boat (or tribe) playing a game like this on universal television. ...I really wished I would have stayed, though…"

"It would have been a great move to do what you did and Shadow actually went home instead of you, even if they chose to vote for Zelda." Shulk hypothesized. "Your talks with Luigi and Knuckles increased your chances without a doubt. You have to learn how to be sociable and interact with different types of people as much as possible. I mean, I've talked with Greninja and we're both super fans. If you're in the final three, and if it comes down to the social relationships, if people have no reason to care about you, you're not gonna win their vote. Therefore, what you just did, if you would have made it to the end, bonding with Luigi and Knuckles was not only good just because, but it was also a great social move, and so I wanted you to know that."

"Aw, thanks man." Roy smiled warmly pausing with his food consumption.

"Hey, maybe if there were more people out there that chose to play with their heart rather than their head, you would have made it tonight." Shulk theorized with a direct point. "And Survivor loves underdogs, anyway. And an emperor _underdog_ in the final three would have been amazing."

"Hopefully Marth and Zelda can hang in there for as long as they can."

"They have to give it a hundred and ten percent."

"_It was very glad for me to hear from Shulk and share a conversation of what I did during my final days at the camp. Like Marth, it feels like an older sibling in a way trying to give his little brother advice about the people I'm surrounded with and how crucial it really is in a game like Survivor. ...You know,... I don't think I've spent enough time with the people that were in my army as we all fought back in the day… And… not everyone makes it alive all the time… I actually feel a little guilty about it."_

_He had to wipe tears from his face. "Goodness gracious, I'm shedding tears at Ponderosa… You know what, maybe when I go back home I'll take time out of my days to get to know some of the surviving members of my army. You never know when they're going to take their last breath. In case we have to fight again, we all have to be a family."_

"See you in the morning!"

The red head was now nearing the door of his Ponderosa home.

"So now it's time to prepare for bed. I take showers all the time back home, but I'm a non-technical kinda guy so I didn't know what to expect."

"Woah… I had _that _much dirt in my hair!?" He was apparently using the shampoo that was available. "Seriously? ...I washed my hair in the ocean thousands of times and it's still dirty like this!? Unbelievable!"

"_Hopefully where I'm from, shampoo can actually exist instead of just soap…"_

* * *

**Day 25**

* * *

The next day on the island, Shulk was knocking on the door.

"Hey, Roy, you ready?"

"Almost…"

"Well, you'd better hurry up. Those clouds don't look exactly nice today. I'd rather not let you get wet right before breakfast."

"Alright I'll hurry…"

"_Now it's time for me to really start enjoy Ponderosa."_

"Alright, what are we getting here?" Shulk pulled out chairs for himself and Roy. "I would say you can choose wisely, but we have so many options here. Hopefully you don't rush it and actually take your time and look at the menu."

He was already staring at it. "...Maybe if my stomach was like a black hole I might as well order the whole menu… _twice_…"

"I know that feeling all too well. You already told me you didn't get to go on that reward."

"_All you can eat buffets on Survivor is everything. Besides putting the weight back on, unlike the island, there is no limit of what you can eat on Ponderosa; the perfect comparison to sharing one bowl of rice with twelve other people, with different tribemates having larger appetites, which leads to multiple complaints that I had to put up with. So hopefully whoever comes here has a big appetite so they don't have to worry about anything. But for now, they have to suffer because of the rain."_

And minutes into breakfast, it began to sprinkle. Though both boys knew that it was definitely going to get worse.

"It has been raining quite a lot lately…" Roy stared at it for a bit. "Do you think it's gonna lighten up soon?"

"Maybe it could be good if it rains every time they wake up in the morning to realize that there is one less person on the island." Shulk joked. "Sort of a reminder that we both died at Tribal Council for what they did."

"Karma basically?" Roy laughed with him. "Well I guess that's somewhat amusing. But that just means that I had to think about you even though I didn't put your name down last time. Though it could be a perfect reflection for those who did."

"_When you fall in battle knowing that you've been defeated, of course you have no one to blame but yourself because you don't see how is it the fault of any other individual. And even though I didn't vote myself out, I still felt that I could have done better."_

"You know, I've had my fair share of battles myself." Shulk was having another conversation with Roy that he himself could relate to on some level. "When you're fighting your friends, army, or whoever and whatever you are fighting for, losing whatever war you're facing is every hero's worst nightmare. But at the same time, you can't beat yourself up over it every time you face a loss. And I believe that you're not just a good hero, but… a good _Young Lion _ at that."

Both players shared a laugh once more.

"Well, whatever you'd like to call me to acknowledge of what I've done, I appreciate it." Roy replied.

"_Losing is quite horrible, though at some point you must get over it because it only makes you stronger. And now that I'm out of the game, this young emperor over here finally understands of what it's like to lose and not win everything you set your mind to. Though knowing that there's a low chance of anyone winning this game, let alone being on the show at all, I've made it to the merge. There's always something you can pat yourself on the back for, just because of how far you've come. And I really do think that I've learned a lot to become the stronger young man that I am now."_

* * *

**This chapter surprisingly took some time for me to get done, mainly because as I said before, as much as I enjoy writing the Ponderosa fics, and even though each character that joins the jury has their moment, it can get a bit repetitive at times because you're just adding in just another characters going through the exact same situation only through a different point of view. Though they're still fun to write.**

**But other than that, Roy even surprised me (even though I'm the writer lol) of what he has become at this point. He really took it hard that his days were numbered and that was when he really thought about the once in a lifetime adventure he was in. He's gained a huge amount of respect from me. The pressures of a young adult being a swordsman in battle because of an ill parent must be a pain to go through, but Roy did it. And now he really took the time to think to himself as he talked with Shulk about being in an adventure like that of how you shouldn't beat yourself up over every mistake you made because you know you gave everything your best, and that's the most important part.**

**Questions:**

**What did you think of Roy's game? Was it great, or good with some flaws?**

**Which of the people remaining in the game do you think Roy is most like and why?**

**If Roy is one of your favorites, vote for him on my poll on my profile and I will see you all next time whenever the third member of the jury is announced!**


	3. Chapter 3: Juror 3

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 3 - Juror 3

**Hello, and welcome to another chapter of the sidefic of Emperors vs Knights, and this time we have basically the main villain of the season (possibly even the biggest character this season, Shadow the Hedgehog). And I'm actually really excited to do this! The Sonic series was always a part of my childhood ever since I played Sonic Rush, so eventually I learned about Shadow the Hedgehog (yeah I know about the reputation of the modern Sonic games). But Shadow is probably my favorite Sonic character in the series, and right behind him is Knuckles and now look what happened lol.**

**This is probably going to be the most interesting Ponderosa in the story so far. Not only we get to know the feelings of Shadow of all people being eliminated from the game, but now he has to attend Ponderosa with Shulk and Roy, knowing he was one of the main ones responsible for voting them on and turning on the tribe multiple times.**

**Let's head right into it!**

**~KF**

* * *

"_Hello. I am Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog. And this is my Ponderosa."_

* * *

**Night 26**

* * *

Just a sigh.

Nothing more, nothing less. Sometimes when so much occurred for whatever reason whether one was fond of it or not, at times it was best to simply not say anything at all, which was exactly how Shadow the Hedgehog would have described. He clearly had a million thoughts in his head, half of which trying to process what just happened, yet he chose to keep his mouth shut, or else he would have been talking for the entire night, even though at some point he knew he was going to open his mouth about the game anyway.

"_Planned on making it all the way to the end, only to not even reach tenth place. Bit of a letdown, but I guess I'll find some way to cooperate with it. You try so hard to win and you realize that you just can't win everything, and I found out the hard way… no wonder I was classified as an emperor."_

He went inside the tent to meet Crazy Hand the doctor.

"Hello, Shadow! You are just in time for your check-up. First, I need to get your blood pressure. Please sit right here!"

"With _pleasure_…" He replied with a bit of sarcasm, but obeyed, watching Crazy Hand wrap the material around his arm.

"So, tell me what was the most difficult part of the game for _you_?"

"Ugh…" A hand was put to the head by simply thinking about the matter. "Easily me dealing with the people I'm surrounded with. You can't expect to deal with others that have the same mentality you have. Not everyone the same way, and so how you would normally approach others that you are used to, sometimes you gotta approach people differently. And at times, it takes every ounce of your body to keep your composure."

"..._Well_,..." Crazy Hand took a bit of time to think of something to make of it. "I think one of the most important things a person should have is some type of composure like you said. Perhaps this experience has taught you that sometimes you need patience, especially since not everyone speaks the same language… literally at times!"

"_...I guess for Marth and Zelda, time will tell if they made the right choice, because if they didn't, I will make sure it haunts them if one of them joins me for this. Otherwise, I suppose this is what I get for my actions in my game."_

"What does the scale say?"

"...69.1... "

"And you weighed 77.1 pounds, which mean that you lost eight pounds exactly!" Crazy Hand noted.

"_I didn't expect to lose any weight at all, since this is quite surprising… I didn't want to become __**this**_ _anorexic…"_

He was now getting off the boat to join two of his fellow emperors, which to his surprise, were both standing out on the steps awaiting his arrival.

"...?"

"'Sup, Shadow!"

"Welcome aboard!"

"_Shulk and Roy were actually welcoming by the time I arrived at Ponderosa. I was somewhat surprised, since I felt that worst case scenario they were going to feel bitter about my decision making and give me a million reasons why I shouldn't have done what I did. Either they actually understood where I was coming from, or they felt that they simply needed to bury the hatchet."_

"Such a blindside, huh?"

"Indeed." He answered Roy as he made his way in the cafe, Shulk directing him towards a mirror so that the hedgehog had the opportunity to get a good look at himself.

"...Still the same… Just need to get this dirt out of my fur and that will be it…"

Roy blinked. "You have no idea how lucky you are to be a furry…"

The furry male quickly turned. "What's _that _supposed to mean?"

"_I mean sure, almost none of the emperors were on the same page as Shadow for most of the game, and he was sorta difficult to get along with at times, but… I gotta say… he played his heart out on that island. He at least made moves that people like myself were scared to make… I'm still trying to figure out if the moves were in fact good for his game, but… I'm just gonna leave it all up to television at this point." Shulk laughed._

"Now you're most likely hungry." assumed the blonde man, being kind enough to pull a chair out. "Sit right here. The sooner you wait, the sooner you eat, and the sooner you will head to bed."

"_So I took a glance at the menu, and eventually I will trying to stomach my food, yet Shulk and Roy just couldn't help but question me of the events of the merged beach while they were eliminated, which I can't really blame them. They were unaware of the situation that occurred before that tribal."_

"Okay, so who voted for who?" Roy asked first.

"The plan was supposed to be for one of the Chatan Four that consisted of Greninja, Sheik, Luigi, and Shovel Knight." Shadow ate a few nachos as he began to elaborate. "Though I was hesitant at first, we decided to put the votes on Luigi for being the safest option in regards to possible idols. Marth and Zelda were the swing votes though, because some of us wanted to get rid of one of the Chatan Four."

"You mean Bonnie, Knuckles, and Foxy?" Shulk, though trying his best to understand, never wrapped his finger around it initially. Roy of course was just as confused as he was. "When did those three wanted to flip on the rest of the knights?"

"Alright, since we are already here,..." Shadow uncapped his beer that was placed in front of him. "I guess it's time for me to admit the truth… Before the first post-merge Tribal Council, myself, Knuckles, Bonnie, Foxy, and Freddy were all in a Hidden Five alliance that were playing on making it all the way to the end by voting out whoever we wanted…"

Jaws were immediately dropped.

"..._What_?" said Roy in disbelief.

"So _that's_ why you and Freddy flipped…" Shulk snapped his fingers. "It all is finally starting to make some sense here… so how did Marth and Zelda got in it?"

"Well, first we voted you out to save Freddy, then we all decided to split between Marth and Roy to get rid of the idol, and because of the fact that I was thrown under the carpet, well,... we were ready to get rid of a knight anyway. So we tried to manipulate Marth and Zelda, even me and Freddy going as far as to telling them that we all could be final four so that those two wouldn't suspect me and Freddy being in a secret alliance with those three knights. Yet in the end, look where I'm at right now…"

…

Perhaps their mouths chose not to utter a sound, yet in their minds, Shulk and Roy of course had quite a bit to say.

"_Tsk!" The Mobian actually smirked. "Judging by their looks, I don't know exactly if it that's what they wanted to hear now that they have learned the truth, yet at the same time, the truth is powerful for a reason. How do they exactly feel of me telling them that if something I don't care for that much. It's simply satisfying when they are finally aware of what was going on. Now they see why I did what I did. ...I don't care if they apologize for their actions. Just them hearing of what was actually going on was just enough in my opinion."_

"...This… this is a lot to take in…" Shulk finally came up with something to say, even him placing a hand on his own forehead as Shadow continued to eat without even glancing his way. "...So,... with you gone, what do you think those four are gonna do now?"

"Beats me, but I hope they don't disband. I want at least one of those four to make it to the end just so that they can get their revenge on me, especially Knuckles."

"_At this point, I hope that this is enough motivation for Knuckles to go all the way. I've put my tail on the line for him repeatedly, so that should be more than enough to get him the drive that he needs to get to the finals. But for now, I guess tomorrow's is gonna be a new day. I need to go wash my quills…"_

* * *

**Day 27**

* * *

By the next day, Shadow the Hedgehog was sleeping soundly in his bed, him managing to ignore the sunlight that came through his window in his new temporary home at the Ponderosa.

Suddenly…

_**KNOCK! KNOCK!**_

...he was jolted awake, whether he had plans to stay asleep or not.

"Yo, Shadow!" Shulk's voice sounded on the other side of the door. "Aren't you getting up? It's already nearing ten in the morning and for once it's not raining outside! You don't wanna just stay in the house all day! Go get ready and eat something!"

"_I would have confronted Shulk about him rudely waking me out of my sleep this morning easily, especially after having my first full sleep in twenty-seven days. ...However, I simply didn't have the energy to do so. I was already ready for breakfast, anyway. Besides, at least it was better than whatever sleep I had for the past four weeks… and the coffee here is pretty decent…"_

He was now sitting at a table with a mug in front of him as well as his breakfast for today. Yes, he was quite a fan of stuffed french toast indeed, and he ate it like he never had it before, ignoring the small snickering coming from Shulk and Roy watching nearby.

"I… think he'll like it here…" Shulk concluded.

"Yep."

"_Shadow doesn't seem to be holding a grudge against either of us." said Roy. "...I guess whenever he is not being moody at the camp it's always a good thing. He immediately made himself at home the moment he came here. ...Maybe he's sort of an emotional eater trying to cope with the fact that he is not going to be the Sole Survivor."_

"So, do either of you want to go snorkeling today?" Shulk suddenly asked.

"Well…" Roy thought for a moment out loud, but politely declined the offer. "I would, but I'm not much of a snorkel guy, and I kind of learned it the hard way."

"Okay." He nodded before turning to the newest jury member. "What about you, Shads?"

An immediate head shake was his reaction.

"Not today. I've already had to undergo twenty-seven days dealing with it all. My plan for today is to simply lie low for a while until say, a couple days, I guess. But for right now, you can catch all the fish you want."

"...So in other words to great Shadow the Hedgehog wants to have a lazy day, huh?"

Glare.

"Just kidding, haha!"

"_You know, it's actually kinda fun testing him at times." Shulk humorously smirked. "I wonder if someone does it to him all the time back at home…"_

Minutes later as Shulk dived into the water, Roy decided to stay with Shadow for a bit. Though the atmosphere was quiet initially, Roy thought it was a perfect opportunity to break the ice and start a conversation.

"So, do you still have any harsh things to say about me after what me, Marth, and Zelda did before you left?"

"To be honest, I was upset at you three after you left." Shadow responded to the red-haired boy's curiosity. "However, at the end of the day, _I _was the one who survived the night. You already had to make your way here to see Shulk first, which meant two more days I had out there. It did cost me in the end, yet at least I still had the advantage."

"...Ooookay?" His laugh was at least there somewhat. "I guess it takes some time, then. But I forgive you and hopefully you'll forgive me."

"Fair enough…"

"_I mean, I could have just made it easier for the both of us for me to distance myself away from Shadow since our personalities clearly don't mix… However, what I learned from being out there with nineteen other strangers is that everybody has a vulnerable side somewhere including myself. So my goal was to at least try to get through to Shadow. He's trying his hardest to deal with the situation he is now, so I wondered if he would actually open up or not… I mean if he didn't then at least I've got to spend time with him… But he did…"_

_._

"The thing is that you all have to understand that even though you can't play alone in Survivor, since you have to work with at least _someone_ to get to the end, I'm playing _with_ other people, not _for_ other people."

"Yeah, at this point I can understand that. Our strategies just didn't… mesh together, that's all…" Roy on that day in particular clearly had no plans to tear into Shadow's strategy anymore. "But,... what is your future with me or any of the people you have met out there?"

"For the most part?" Shadow started. "...Simply acquaintances."

And to Roy, that was very Shadow the Hedgehog indeed. Yet he still went on. "Alright… So how do you think they would perceive you?"

That was when he let out a small grunt. "You should know that I do not care what people think about me."

"Oh, I'm not saying you should, just generally curious is all…"

"Well, now that everyone knows what the plan was supposed to be based on that last Tribal Council, I'm probably being paved as a flip flopper anyway." He remained silent for a bit. "I don't know if that's really what people think of me, but I wouldn't be surprised, yet I would not understand… I don't flip flop every tribal. I do what people tell me to do whenever it is necessary. I do that, yet the few times where I'm motivated to do something else to further myself in the game, I'm all of a sudden making the biggest mistake of my life. Just how in the real world people don't even know what to think of me because they don't know where to start…"

"..." The Young Lion look of surprise said it all. He expected a response, yet a response such as that was not exactly what he had in mind at all. Basically to him, though Shadow clearly felt annoyed of the public perception from his fellow castaways, underneath he felt… confused and lost…

"_I guess everybody has their own way of expressing their emotions…" Roy concluded._

"So… is this coming from by you saying that you feel it is what people think of you outside of this?"

"Absolutely." The ebony male's eyes ignored his fellow emperor's. "One minute I'm the hero, next minute I'm the villain. In my mind, I'm like… 'Make up your mind. Pick a side.'"

"...Could we call you an _anti-hero_, then?" The red-haired swordsman smirked largely. "It's sort of a mixture of both. How does that sound?"

"..." The eyes finally met. "I think… if people think I truly have qualities of a villain, if they don't know what to call me, an anti-hero would be the right assumption in their eyes depending on how they think."

-/-

"_I guess at this point, even though to me it's not about what people think whatsoever, I feel that it is more about me being independent and taking control of my own fate, just how I would in the real world. And interestingly enough, I felt it is exactly how I played out on Survivor. I always done what is best for my personal interest whether it went along with other peoples' plans or not. Sure enough, for the most part it is no different from the situations that I face back on Mobius."_

Shadow eventually decided to head out snorkeling with Shulk in the end, already having his gear ready to go out in the water.

"Oh, cool!" The heir to the Monado was surprised indeed. "You actually came out here!"

"...Exactly how many fish are in the sea? ..._Literally_?"

"...A lot?"

"Sounds good enough. This might be the exercise that I need in the water today."

"_I like to do whatever I want. Whatever public perception of me is out there is irrelevant. This is about my control where I determine my own destiny. Whether it cost me or not, if I'm not winning the million, then at least I put myself out there a hundred percent. ...And surprisingly, whether I want to admit it or not,... staying true to myself instead of being a faker out there just to win a million,... is actually more satisfying in my opinion."_

* * *

**Yeah, sorry that it took all day to post this. This might sound unprofessional, but... I kinda forgot too lol. Only thing I had to do was to type this outro.**

**But yeah, of the thirteen Ponderosa chapters of my entire Survivor series so far, this one is arguably my favorite based on Shadow's gameplay and character and how everything was turned out to be on Ponderosa. Obviously the main villain of the season. I know there are a lot of Shadow fans out there. But don't worry! Heroes vs Villains will be the All Star season!  
**

**Questions:**

**1\. What do you think of Shadow's gameplay? Any praises? Criticisms?**

**2\. What do you think of Shadow's character personally? (Gonna start asking this for now on too.)**

**If you liked Shadow, he's currently tied with Krystal of all people for first place on my poll, so if you haven't already, go ahead and vote on my profile and I encourage everyone to review. See you all next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4: Juror 4

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 4 - Juror 4

**Yeah, sorry about the late chapter for Ponderosa lol. But better late than never. At least it's before we get our fifth member of our jury. Though since clearly today is going to be all about juror number four, Greninja is receiving the spotlight instead. Poor Greninja. I really do feel like he played a great game. He's strong, smart, and sociable. Literally the total package. My only constructive criticism for his game is that he was almost completely unaware of what's going on in regards to people talking behind his back. But other that, good player imo. His name was brought up by other players for quite some time, though.**

**Let's find out if he just missed out on the Loved Ones visit (which would be awful)...**

**~KF**

* * *

_ "Hi, I'm Greninja, and this is my Ponderosa!"_

* * *

**Night 28**

* * *

"Wow... I... I have no words..."

_ "I took my time leaving Tribal Council and into Crazy Hand's tent, I'll admit. I didn't rush over there just to get it over with just so I can eat food at the café or anything. It was just my entire game flashing back at me while I slowly accepted the fact that fate didn't choose me to win this game... which is fine, I'll say... I mean, it's a bummer that I couldn't even get a single digit placement, but tenth? At least I'm in the top ten, so I'm grateful for that."_

"That was... quite a blindside tonight... I had a feeling that Freddy still had the idol. It was just that I didn't expect him to play it correctly..."

_"Me, Sheik, Shovel, Luigi, and Zelda thought that Freddy never had a big chance of playing his idol correctly because we chose to target Knuckles instead. Freddy himself was the biggest threat in that alliance, and Bonnie was the absolute safest option, which they would have expected because that's what they try to do to us in the Shadow vote when they voted for Luigi. Our plan was actually set to work out fine,... but then apparently Marth flipped and voted me out. Clearly he told Freddy that Knuckles was our target."_

"I mean,... I'm not mad at Marth... for multiple reasons actually. I don't understand exactly why he flipped after he just sided with us, but I'm not mad." He continued his walk. "I can't even call it a backstab because Marth was the one who sided with me, not me siding with him even though we told him to vote for Shadow at the time. ...However, I _do _think the one person he betrayed was obviously Zelda. Not sure if that was the best idea for his game, but I suppose if Marth still wants to win, he'd better have some pretty darn good reasons to give to Zelda on why he chose to vote differently."

_"And then to top it all off, **Shovel Knight** chose to **not** play his idol on me, hahaha! Like, really? I know he's probably keeping it for himself and probably Luigi, but **man**! Dude, you could have saved me! ...But then either Zelda would have flipped at that point, or it would have been a tie, and **then **Zelda would have flipped... Lose-lose situation, I guess..."_

The water-type Pokémon finally made it over to Crazy Hand's medical tent.

"How are we doing tonight, Greninja?"

"Well,... I may have not survived in Survivor, but I suppose I'm still surviving period... I'm good." He sat down in the single chair in the tent.

"So, you are the third Pokémon ever to compete on the show." Crazy Hand was beginning to take his blood pressure. "What was the whole survival thing like for you? Maybe this could help all the future Pokémon that have the desire to compete on a show such as this."

"...Well, for _my _personal experience, I thought that me being almost frozen to death before being found by my trainer gave me the experience that I needed to be in a tropical climate such as Kodai Island, even thought it can get cold at night at times because of the rain. So I suppose if there is another Pokémon that barely survived after being in the cold for so long out on your own, this is nothing, except for the fact that you still have a lack of food of course. But if this is something that is out of their comfort zone, if you just want to try it out because of me _myself_ being a Pokémon, well, I've lasted twenty-eight days. Let's see if you can beat me, you know?"

_"You know,... it was actually good thing that Crazy Hand brought that up. There haven't been that many Pokémon that competed on Survivor. After all, this is literally the second season this has happened. I haven't thought of it as much as I actually am right now, but now that I'm thinking about that again... I'm... I'm actually... 'xcuse me for a moment..." He clearly never wanted anyone to see the tears he had in his eyes, so he wiped them away before they even came down. Nonetheless, in spite of his best efforts to speak clearly, his somewhat emotional voice was far too blatant to ignore. "It actually meant a lot to me when he pointed that out... All this long time of me being home with Calem watching Survivor, now I finally had my opportunity to play,... I'm probably generic for saying this, but if I've waited this long to get in despite the circumstances, then other Pokémon who are probably watching this right now can do the same. Just apply for it, be yourself, and one day Master Hand, or someone from the Survivor team will notice you... Calem, I'm sorry I couldn't bring you to Kodai Island so you can see for yourself, but... I'm happy. I'm stil happy. Thank you for letting me come out here."_

He was now being weighed. "...81.3..."

"And you weighed 88.2 pounds before you started your run, meaning that you lost exactly..." Crazy Hand took a moment to do the math. "6.9 pounds, Greninja…"

"Not even double digits..." He blinked at the number that appeared by his feet on the scale. "I mean, I look at Ponderosa, too. If I was a human, this would have been interesting to say the least..."

-/-

Greninja was now getting off the boat.

_"In my mind, I was acting as if I was on another new tribe or something. So I was like: 'Okay, one knight, three emperors. I'm all on my own.' But then I reminded myself that, dude... the game is over. There's no reason to stress yourself over numbers before. You're out of the game just like they are, and now you get to enjoy bonding with them on a beautiful beach like this where we get to eat all we want... You know? Time to loosen up a little... even though I literally helped vote all three of them out."_

Shulk and Roy were already calling out for him while he laughed in return taking his time to reach the Ponderosa café.

"You didn't deserve to come here. We would have liked it if you were still in the running." Shulk told him before he shared a friendly embrace with Greninja as well as Roy, shaking Shadow's hand. "We were rooting for you."

"...All three of you?"

The first two jurors took a quick glance at juror number three.

"...Well,... at the very least I was quite curious to see how far you would go. I might have been against you, but to be honest, you proved you had quite a bit of potential."

"Okay, I can take that. Thanks!"

"You must be exhausted..." said Roy.

"I am a little, but I still have some energy left. It wasn't even a physical challenge today... though Shovel Knight beat me for immunity."

"What challenge was it?"

"House of cards?"

"..." Roy blinked. "_I_ could have won _that_!"

_"It was just really great for me to bond with these people. Shulk, Roy, and even Shadow. They might have all been eliminated before I was, but if my dreams are crushed now, at least there are three people that are with me that we can bond over. We didn't survive Survivor, but at least it's not literally of course, or else we wouldn't be enjoying all this amazing food right now."_

But before Greninja dived in, he was slowly being brought to a mirror by Shulk and Roy, the former with his hands over his eyes even though they were already closed to begin with.

By the time Shulk told him to look, all the frog-like creature did was simply cock his head to the side. Though, one could not have blamed him for an underwhelming reaction. It was basically just Greninja with a hint of dirt, similar to Shadow the Hedgehog. A simple, good wash up could have done the trick.

_"**None **of us expected Greninja to go out the way he did." Roy spoke. "We didn't even expect him, or any of Chatan Four to get eliminated yet. And yet, here he is with us. However, even though he's with us, what really shook me the most was the fact that apparently Marth flipped."_

"As you can see, Greninja," Shadow was actually the one that began to talk first. "curiosity has managed to get the best of all three of us. We want to know what made Marth turn."

The two that were out of the game before the black hedgehog both waited for answer, yet all the newest jury member could have done was simply laugh in defeat.

"I... I'm afraid I don't have a proper answer myself, to be honest with you guys." He admitted. "Though, the least I can say is that Marth basically said directly to Zelda something about making sure she stays in the game..."

"...I don't think I even heard that!" Roy commented.

"Me neither." Shulk shook.

"..." That was when Greninja thought of something. "You know, now that I'm really thinking about it, _my_ theory is that Marth flipped in order to show Zelda of what direction she should take... or, Marth simply wanted to flip alone, while still keep Zelda no matter what she does..."

"The former does make the most sense, though." Shulk nodded in agreement watching Greninja diving into his cheeseburger. "I think that Marth would have had at least one conversation with Zelda about both of them flipping, especially since they sent Shadow out of the game."

Shadow in particular made no reaction and continued eating his lobster.

"Oh Marth..." Roy heaved a great sigh, lowering his head slightly thinking about his number one ally in the game.

"What do you feel?" Shulk questioned.

"Oh, it's nothing. I just want some answers from himself it seems. That's all. I am just... _stunned completely_ that Marth turned on her alliance behind her back, let alone the two voting differently. I mean, both of them _are_ our last hope."

At least for himself and Shulk.

And Shadow wanted to make that clear by having his own input on the situation. "You know what, at the end of the day, as long as Knuckles, or at least someone from my core alliance is remaining in the game, then I'm satisfied. Now that they all survived, hopefully things will work in their favor the next time, too."

Nobody came up with words immediately after that statement.

_"I'm literally the only one of the emperors that's actually elated to see Greninja here..." He stated. "I mean, in a way, I didn't want to see him here, since he does have some potential in him. Yet at the same time, there were other people that I prefer to root for. My main ally, Knuckles, just had a close call. I didn't even expect my alliance to get their way at all at the Tribal Council. They've all proven their intelligence, and I believe the Chatan Four greatly underestimated them completely. If all four of them make the final four, it would be a complete avenge for my part."_

"And while we're on that, just so you know, the three of you were probably wondering about the longest time about who from Chatan really has the idol." Greinja finally chose to spill the beans. They were at Ponderosa after all. Surely it could not have hurt anything, right? "...Shovel Knight _indeed_ has it."

They all stared.

"Before we voted off Rouge," He recalled. "me and Sheik were trying to find the idol ourselves so that Sheik could have it. But by the time we got the idol was supposed to be, we assumed Shovel had it because he was the only other old Chatan member that visited exile, and we were right. He showed it to us right before we went to bed that night."

"...So, why didn't he play the idol for you?" Roy blinked.

"I dunno, but in a way I guess that's good for them. 5-5 for the votes anyway. For all we know, maybe he did wanted to use the idol on me but knew the consequences..." A few seconds of silence got to him before he un-paused his speech in between bites. "But then again, the only person that expected Marth to flip was Freddy of all people. Even Freddy's alliance was shocked that Freddy had the idol, let alone the fact that Marth jumped ship."

-/-

Greninja was now entering his temporary home at Ponderosa.

"Oh, cool. The rest of my stuff is here! And good to know I'm actually sleeping on a _bed_ for once."

_"You know, in a way, I wanted Ponderosa to be part of my Survivor experience, too. I still prefer to stay in the game playing, but at least I have a little more than a week to relax and calm my nerves down as I prepare for the Final Tribal Council that is around the corner. So I guess for day twenty-nine, it's gonna be me, Shadow, Roy, and Shulk for the day. Nobody being voted out or sent to exile, just us four being ourselves without the huge amount of pressure on our shoulders because of the game in general. Can't wait to see it!"_

* * *

**Day 29**

* * *

Later on in the next day after breakfast, while Roy and Shadow were away, that left Greinja with Shulk, who he had the desire to reconnect with anyway. Both were relaxing in chairs near the café as the took a glance at horizon, with initially no words being exchange for at least five minutes.

Shulk, however, chose to break the ice. "Wonder when they're gonna do another Heroes vs Villains again?"

"I was actually wondering about that." Greninja replied, the horizon still getting his attention. "I'm not sure exactly, but hopefully they'll do it soon. I'm pretty sure everyone person I know that watches Survivor will love it."

_"Me and Greninja, in spite of our differences, have more in common than we thought. But obviously what stands out is that we're both really big fans of Survivor. However, what prevented me from talking with him often was of how little time was spent between us due to alliances, tribes, and the fact that he placed three spots higher than me. So while it was just us two, we figured that it was best for us to finally start talking."_

"Do you think that they'll ever do an All Winners season?" Shulk questioned.

He shrugged in reaction, relaxing in his chair even more. "I think they would. I think it all depends on how many people that want to come back. If there ever was one, who do you think is gonna be a shoo in?"

"Well, I think all of the Survivor community knows who are the first few are gonna be." Shulk laughed. "And I think as long as people play their cards right, we would have another great season of Survivor, probably one of the best of all time. Think so?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely." The Pokémon agreed. "But personally, I'm more into Heroes vs Villains, because honestly, you can be either a hero or a villain in every single season of Survivor."

"Well, I think there can be some middle ground here and there, though."

"Oh right, no doubt about that." Greninja acknowledged his point. "There are some people that can't be classified as a hero _nor_ a villain. Some players try to play the biggest strategic game they could, some make decisions based on their emotions and how they feel, and some people try to go under the radar to not be targeted. And with all the seasons, there's at least one player that fits into at least one of these categories.'

"I can't agree more." Shulk was smiling. "...This season?"

"...Well, we all know Shadow is a villain. No doubt about that."

Both of them chortled.

"What about your new friend, Sheik?"

"..." He simply shrugged. "She's in the middle it seems. We'll see if anything happens in the future."

_"Without question, I can easily see myself being friends with the heir to the Monado for a long time."_

-/-

The water-type Pokémon was now relaxing in a hammock near the café with eyes closed as the waves continued to crash down on the beach.

"You know, now that I think about it, I'm really starting to realize that I have come close to win four immunities, but lost every single time. ...I've never won **one **immunity... Would have really felt like if I had a taste of it, but I guess it is what it is. I have no reason to be a sore loser. Just like I have no reason to be a sore loser when I face the final three. Marth? ...I don't know what would happen to him, but when I get the chance to speak with him again, even though it was a questionable move in my opinion on voting me out, still... I have no reason to be a sore loser. I'm sure he at least has good intentions with the people who is closest with him, and I will try my best to understand what these intentions were when we're speaking to each other once more."

"Yeah... still, I'm sorry that things didn't work out for you." a sympathetic Roy was now speaking with him at lunch. "I feel like we really would have been good allies if we started off on the same tribe."

"Don't worry. Voting off is quite common in Survivor. I may be hurting a little now, but... this is why I'm here." Greninja found himself staring at his food for a few moments. "I'm just gonna spend the rest of my Survivor days here reflecting until we have jury duty for final tribal..."

"Man... I known I've said it countless times before, but this experience... I really felt that I accomplished at least most of the things I hoped to accomplish. You know, sometimes on day one people are usually assuming that they're going to be the first one voted out. But for me, what I was thinking was that I was trying to figure out what can I do so that I can **prevent** myself from being the first one voted out... And it turns out that in the end I didn't have to worry that much because my tribe won immunity, haha! But in all honesty, my Survivor experience as a whole, and I probably speak for everyone out there, no matter what type of player you are, when you get voted out, you really find some time to think everything over to yourself. And I really feel like I've learned a lot about myself out here based on the type of game that I played. Been watching the show since I was a Froakie and now I am officially part of the Survivor family. If this is the one time where I had the chance to play, even though I didn't win,... I'm happy."

* * *

**And there we have it. The chapter is finally done lol. Now, I'll be honest. I am not certain that all that all of the Ponderosa chapters are gonna come out on time. (Kodai Island's Ponderosa chapters were not always on time either so this is nothing new to me lol.) But they _will_****be released so that your favorite jurors could have some closer as they take the time to reflect on their games. And like Shadow's, this is also one of my favorite Ponderosa chapters. Probably because of my perception of Greninja lol.**

**Questions:**

**1\. Did you like Greninja's game? What'd you think of it?**

**2\. What do you think of how Greninja was portrayed in general?**

**If you liked Greninja, vote for him on my poll and I will see you all next time! I encourage everyone to review!**


	5. Chapter 5: Juror 5

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 5 - Juror 5

**Well, after one of, if not, the biggest blindside of the season, Freddy Fazbear (the first official non-Smash related character and first FNAF character in this series) has been eliminated in ninth place. Ninth place isn't bad, in fact great. Especially considering that he was almost eliminated with an idol in his pocket at the merge tribal, I'd take ninth place over thirteen place any day.**

**So anyway, like Greninja, Freddy doesn't really seem to have any close relationships with anyone from the jury, in spite of aligning with Shadow, so for him this could make it rather interesting since Greninja, Roy, Shadow, and Shulk are gonna be the four other people he will be living with for now.**

**~KF**

* * *

_"Hello, everyone. I'm Freddy Fazbear, and welcome to my Ponderosa."_

* * *

**Night 31**

* * *

A sigh of mixed emotions was sounded.

"Now I know how Greninja feels when things don't go as planned..."

_ "So I've been officially eliminated from the game. It was not the overall intention when it came to my alliance, but things happened that were beyond my control. It happens to people sometimes and I guess I'm one of them."_

"I mean I'm not upset or anything... Maybe I am upset a little just because I'm out of the game, but I'm not upset at anyone in particular. It's a game, you know? I have no right to be a sore loser because things didn't go my way..."

_"When Sheik pulled that advantage out, I knew one of us was going home. I was leaning towards the possibility of me going home a little bit, but the other half of me thought that Zelda was completely done with Marth at that point and just decided to let him go. But in the end, I was the one that just got chopped up from the rest of the group. And now... here I am."_

"Sheik is one heck of a player. Such a villainous, bold move, but she's a fighter. I wouldn't mind voting for her if she reaches the end, but we'll see what the competition is. I'm still rooting for Bonnie and Foxy, though..."

Into Crazy Hand's tent he went.

"Hello, Freddy! How are ya doing tonight?"

"Well, I'm tolerating my loss at the moment, but I feel alright." He responded, Crazy Hand then commencing his routine checkup.

_"I really wanted to survive tonight. Not counting the merge Tribal Council, I felt like I really needed to survive tonight in order to get my end game rolling a little. I finally recognized what my game was coming to be, and the day that I do, I get voted out. ...But of course at the same time, if they felt like I was that much of a threat, better get me out late than never. Congrats to them for not waiting too late, I suppose..."_

"Step on the scale for me."

And he did.

"Read to me what's on there and I'll tell you how much weight you have lost."

"...155.3."

"And you weighed 175.2 when we first started with you." Crazy Hand recalled. "That's 19.9 pounds you've lost there. Do you have any plans on putting the weight back on?"

"Well, losing twenty pounds wasn't something that I really wanted to, so I guess I gotta eat. Don't I?"

_"My check up with Crazy Hand proved to be a success. Now I gotta cope with the fact that I'm not winning the game with four other people that have already been voted out before me. All will be well, though. Have just about a week to think of about everything before final tribal before I go back home."_

Once he got off the boat, he nearly jumped upon hearing the thunder in the sky.

_**BOOM!**_

"Guess I made it right on time..."

"Hey, Freddy!" Shulk's voice sounded. "Hurry up and get it over here before it starts raining!"

_"It was... a warm welcome from my fellow jury members. All four of them were pleased to see me hear, even though they still wanted me to continue to be out there fighting. But, you know. Good to have friends that generally don't mind your company, even though we were all complete strangers when this game started."_

By the time he made it in, both Shulk and Greninja each had an arm around a shoulder bringing him to a mirror.

"Just before you sit down and get settled in," The only human of the trio spoke. "we'd like for you to take a moment to appreciate how you look after coming off of Survivor."

"..." He blinked at his reflection, Greninja and Shulk already moving out the way. "Well, I don't think I look _too_ different minus the weight loss. I just need to get this dirt out my fur. Good thing I've been on the spa reward, though."

_"I actually feel a bit guilty here. I've never really took the time to actually get to know Freddy. He seems to be a very nice, friendly guy. I think finding close relationships with people proved to be his biggest problem, because I guess he was so worried of how he would have came off and people thought of him out here, but I thought he did **really **well. Didn't deserve to be eliminated the way he did, but that's why we're showing him that we love him. Yeah, he voted me out, but to be honest, it wasn't enough one of the first things I thought of when I saw him coming our way."_

"...What'd you think of me voting you out?"

Ignoring the heaving rain that was just outside, after sitting down at the table after a bunch of food was placed in front of him, Fazbear popped a question he always wanted to ask Shulk for obvious reasons.

"Don't even think about explaining yourself." Shulk held a hand out. "I'd rather flip and vote someone from my alliance out then vote my own self out of the game and looked like an idiot for not making a move. You _clearly_ didn't wanna do that."

Roy, who was already eating himself, nodded in agreement.

"I really didn't." Freddy shook his head in confirmation, cutting a piece of his steak. "And then Roy over here was really starting to bond with everyone well, and that made me feel even more guilty."

"Aww." That really touched him. "You shouldn't have to feel that way even though we were all playing a game."

"I know, but I guess that was my heart that was talking for me. Marth still feels bad for because he idol'd you out."

"Well if he is here sometime in the future, I'm actually gonna call him a hero for that. That man is certainly something."

"Since we are already speaking of him," To Shadow, while everyone was speaking of the emotional aspect of the game (which he unsurprisingly remained silent for the most part), thought it was the perfect opportunity to discuss Marth Lowell the moment his name came up. "let us talk about what happened at that tribal. Care to elaborate?"

"Okay. So here's what happened." He explanation began. "The plan for my alliance at the time was to vote for Sheik. We had no plans on voting for Marth and Zelda of course. Luigi wasn't seen as too big of a threat, and we figured that Shovel Knight was the most likely person to have the idol, so Sheik was our choice..."

"And _clearly_, things didn't turn out exactly right." Greninja smirked. "Oh, and by the way, Shovel Knight does have the idol."

"Thank you." He chuckled a bit with a nod. "But anyway, when we found out that Sheik had a Steal-A-Vote, Marth also found this advantage from somewhere... _My _guess is that Sheik was the one that had that advantage to block someone's vote, and once she gave it to Marth, the advantage probably told him to not open until tribal."

"..._Wow_..." Roy blinked out of disbelief. "So Sheik _double-played_ Marth with her advantages."

"I wouldn't say that." Shadow turned his head side to side in disagreement. "Marth's advantage was beyond useless at that point. He didn't even need to play because it would have made no difference."

"Yeah." Freddy spoke again. "So after that, Sheik told Marth something... I think she told him that she was going to vote him out of the game, unless he agreed to work with her alliance. Foxy quickly caught wind of what she was doing, told us that we need to vote for Luigi and swing Zelda over to counter the advantage, but she of course, she didn't wanna do it. Otherwise, I wouldn't be sitting here right now."

"Dang..." Though Greninja's reply was near quiet, he was staring at his place with his mind racing all over the place. Sure, he was proud of his number one ally, yet by the way he was reacting, it was something that not even he would have expected.

"Poor Marth..." Roy on the other hand felt terrible for his own number one ally. "He's probably embarrassed as we speak."

"Here's my opinion on it." Shadow was now the center of attention. "I feel that if Marth is feeling the way he is now, that it was his consequence from voting me out of the game. I mean, sure, he flipped back, but right now for him it's back to square one. Not saying that it was a bad move by sending me to the jury, but... honestly, I call it karma."

No one hardly had anything to say after that.

_"I still have no bitter feelings towards Marth, but I do wonder." Shadow admitted. "What's next for Marth Lowell? What exactly is his game at this point? I will be back on the jury soon so I can see for myself."_

Following his meal, Freddy Fazbear was found racing to his small, temporary home at the Ponderosa, quickly managing to get inside.

_"Had a pretty good time last night if I do say so myself. Me and the others caught up on everything and told each other everything of what happened from each other's point of view and who has what idol, and what this person said to that person. It's kind of a good thing that I've met people here that were in different alliances so that I can learn everything at once rather than wait. So now with that out of the way, now it's time for me to start reflecting on why I came out here."_

* * *

**Day 32**

* * *

Yet the next morning, the weather chose the perfect time to act up.

_"...Unfortunately, it took a while for the sun to finally come out. We had to run to the café to not get as wet as possible, because of how severe the storm was this morning. Maybe it's a good thing that I'm here though, because it's of course better than what they're all going through since they're still on that island. They probably had no fire for a while. Maybe it's what some of them get for voting me off, haha! The only reason why we all came out because we wanted to have breakfast."_

He was in the middle of eating while exchanging brief laugh with his fellow jurors.

"We aren't gonna be here long, are we?"

"Clearly not." Freddy answered Greninja. "But let's not the rain ruin everything, guys. You are all invited to come to my room."

"Oh, really?" Shulk said.

"Yep."

"I'll go." Even Shadow was in on Freddy's plan. "I'd stay in my own room, but the only reason why I'm not is because I'd rather not spend these next few hours with nothing to do."

"You can go back to sleep..." Roy suggested.

"I'm not on the island anymore. I got enough sleep last night."

_"I know that they all really wanted to spend time with me, so I invited everyone to come on over since we didn't have much to do but wait, anyway. Everybody grabbed their stuff and there they came."_

The group was then chatting away.

"So Freddy, curiosity has taken the better of me, so I need to ask you something."

"Go ahead." He gave Greninja the permission to ask away.

"I've heard rumors that you can sing. Is that true?"

"...Did you guys tell him that?" He shot a friendly, yet somewhat aggressive glare at Shulk, Shadow, and Roy.

Shadow shaking his head in reaction, seemingly in his own world for the most part, Shulk and Roy chuckled out of their own guilt.

"We just had to. We wanted to know what he thought of it and he said that he really wants to know what your singing sounds like." The blonde haired young man replied.

"Same with us, as well." Roy added. "We've known you for the longest, yet you've wasted many opportunities to sing for the tribe. Whenever it was raining and we had nothing to do, you could have sang one song but you chose not to."

"Because I didn't wanna do it!" Fazbear reacted. "I don't just randomly sing because of the weather outside!"

"Doesn't mean that you can't start now." The Young Lion kept at it with a smirk. "I know you got it in you, Freddy. Sing us a song. Anything."

"..." Now what was Freddy going to do? Keep his own word, or give in as if he was about to give in to a child's temper tantrum?

_"I... I dunno if I have the **best **voice in the word, but I've heard a few compliments from people that they are quite fond of my voice. I don't even want to be an official singer; it's just a little hobby of mine that I liked to do. ...But of course, I had to open up my mouth on Survivor and tell my tribe that I sometimes sing to myself during my spare time. It's all my fault."_

Due to peer pressure, Freddy obeyed.

"_Colors weave into a spire of flame_

_Distant sparks call to a past still unnamed_

_Bear this torch against the cold of the night_

_Search your soul and reawaken the undying light._"

The next Fazbear knew, all four former member of his tribe were literally silent, making him only sigh in reaction. Not because he thought, that they thought his singing was bad; he knew they enjoyed it. It was just that in his world it was sort of awkward, and one could not have blamed him for his reasons.

Although, Greninja called him out for sighing. "Why are you sighing? That was great!"

"Great for a random guy like me, but for maybe a talented big singer? I'm not sure..." He shook his head in reply. "Was gonna sing a love song by one of my favorite artists, but for the one that I sung had more powerful vocals."

"I think the one you initially wanted to sing would have been great, anyway."

Smirking to Shulk, his head briefly turned to Shadow. "Shadow, I need to hear your opinion, too. How was it?"

"It was good. Not gonna lie."

Freddy actually widened his eyes at that. "...Good? ...I think that was the absolute nicest thing you've said to me this whole season, Shadow!"

In contrast to the hedgehog's annoyance, everybody else shared a big laugh.

Then all of a sudden, his door opened, and in came someone that Freddy Fazbear knew all too well.

"...What!?"

As much as a shock it was to everyone else in the room, the next thing they knew, they witnessed Freddy dashing up towards someone that was actually expecting to see him.

His younger brother, Rodriguez Fazbear.

_"My brother out of nowhere coming in my room soaking wet was the absolute last thing I expected. ...Yeah, this basically means that I just missed out on the Loved Ones visit... But, oh well. At least he still made it to Japan. I'll take that."_

Realization that the other juror members also missed out on the family visit, their emotions slowly became rather mixed. Greninja seemed to be the one that was the most saddened, staring at the floor, yet attempting at his hardest to not have a certain expression on his face. Poor Pokémon really wanted Trainer Calem to come out and greet him after an adventurous thirty-one days of being the only Pokémon of the entire cast.

And to top it all off, Rodriguez actually had their gradually streaming down his face, no one ever even witnessing other than a cameraman due to Freddy's back facing the three other jurors. All they saw were the slightly reddish eyes after Freddy decided to break up the hug.

"You alright?" He rubbed his brother's head.

"E-Everyone's talking about you. Mom is not the same. She can't stop thinking about you. Even dad didn't seen like himself at times."

"..." Freddy blinked at that. "Well, glad to hear they're alright, but... now I feel bad for leaving them."

"_Don't_." He glared. "We would have made you come out here anyway if you even _thought_ about backing out last minute."

A big laughter was exchanged once again.

_"My family actually told me that I could actually pick whoever I wanted if I was to make it to the Loves Ones visit, and I actually chose Rodriguez to come with me. Why? …I'm actually his biggest inspiration. He knows what I've been through, and me being an elder brother, I had to teach him how to not fall in the same hole like I did. He watched me at my highest highs and lowest lows. Now he's interested of actually being the manager of a business like I am (I don't know what, though). So... my job is to just make sure he follows the right path and... just be honest, you know? When it comes to making mistakes, best to_ _**prevent**, rather than to **react**."_

"Well, I guess you can spend time getting to know four of my tribemates now that you have the chance."

"You know what, maybe it's good that your brother's here instead of making the visit." Shulk glanced at the bright side. "He doesn't have to be involved in all the strategizing and whispering that is probably gonna go on today when everybody else sees their Loved Ones."

-/-

"I love you. I want you to know that... Okay?"

Freddy unfortunately had to sad goodbye to Rodriguez shortly after the sun finally came out. The two were sharing one last embrace as they were now alone by the dock, the boat waiting for Rodriguez to make his return.

"This is gonna be online, so we'll remember this for as long as we live. Tell mom and dad everything, but... make sure they don't share anything outside the house. We don't wanna any leaks to happen before this season airs."

He giggled. "Alright, then."

_"Overall, I had a marvelous time out here. After struggling to fit in as if I was in high school, I ended up... getting along with everyone, and even made genuine, real relationships along the way. Me, Foxy, Bonnie, Knuckles, and of course Zelda are gonna hit it off after we're all done. That much I am looking forward to."_

"Have a safe trip back home. The authorities will protect you and everything."

"Freddy, I'm seventeen. I'm growing up. I know how to defend myself."

Now it was his turn to giggle. "Alright, but maybe my warning will be the extra security you need along the way."

_"Would I do Survivor all over again? ...Well,... I'm not gonna... you know, beg to come back or anything. I want to get my mind right, first. But if I'm asked to be brought back I would return. I like Survivor. Like when I'm managing the restaurant back at home, I try my absolute hardest to make sure I'm approachable for everyone. Because I want people to come to me if they have any problems. Thus, same thing out here. On my final day here I finally realized what my game was becoming. And it might have been too late for my to realize, but in case if I was wondering what my game plan even was,... now I have closure. …And to be honest, I think that represents me very well._

With a big wave to his older brother, Freddy had a hand over his eyes as Rodriguez was now riding away on the boat.

* * *

**Note: There were so many songs that I could have had Freddy sing, but because of site rules, I'm not allowed to write the words to the song by actual artists. So I had to got with the World of Light them from Smash Ultimate (fun fact: I never actually cared about that song lol. The lyrics aren't bad at all, but the production makes it all sound a bit cheesy in my opinion.) Btw, Freddy has this sort of "deep, but not so deep" kinda voice, so you can picture him singing the lyrics however you'd like. I myself felt awkward typing Freddy singing, but guess every author has to break out of their comfort zone every once in a while and just go for it lol. (Here's a bonus: if you wanted to know what song I really wanted Freddy to sing, PM me and I'll tell you and I'll see if you know the song/artist lol.)**

**Also, Rodriguez Fazbear is actually Toy Freddy. He needed a name, too, for obvious reasons**

**But anyway, that was Freddy's Ponderosa. ...I... actually thought that as nice as Freddy was, I felt that he actually didn't have that much character growth until near the end of his run. So hopefully this helps.**

**Regardless...**

**Questions:**

**1\. What'd you think about Freddy's game?**

**2\. How'd you feel about me putting basically the first ever... "miscellaneous" character in the game?**

**If you liked Freddy, you can vote for him as one of your top five favorite characters on my poll on my profile on the season! As usual, watch my YouTube intro for Survivor - Emperors vs Knights if you haven't already and I'll see you all next chapter! I encourage everyone to review!**


	6. Chapter 6: Juror 6

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 6 - Juror 6

**Hello everyone. If you are reading this and if you have been catching up on this season, you are well aware that I am very behind on this Ponderosa series for this season. But don't worry. I've done Ponderosa before, and I can do it again lol.**

**So this is the part where Bonnie got blindsided after Knuckles jumped ship, ending off on his number one ally (Foxy) turning on him last minute as a sacrifice assuming that Foxy was the intended target (he was).**

**Yet in spite of him being accidentally eliminated, Bonnie's _still_ on good terms with Foxy. Looks like they'll be best friends no matter what lol.**

**Let's see how he takes his loss knowing that his dreams are crushed.**

**~KF**

* * *

_"H-Hey, everybody! My name is Bonnie and this is my Ponderosa!"_

* * *

**Night 33**

* * *

"Man I wish I would have known better..."

Bonnie Roberts was quietly laughing as he made it down the pathway, long out of the Tribal Council area.

"Can't believe it." He talked. "He actually went ahead and voted me out. Never saw that coming. Not one bit."

_ "I mean, I don't know what else to say. Foxy actually went ahead and write my name down, making sure I go home instead of him, and now I've... basically been voted out by accident. They all know I shouldn't even be here right now. So basically, Foxy just made them look stupid haha! ...Well, not intentionally. It was quite obvious on what he was trying to accomplish. Being bitter towards my number one ally would be the last thing I'll do."_

He sighed, finally ready to begin getting over it all. "Oh man... Well, guess it's time to meet up with the others. I'm basically in the middle of the jury phase so I still got at least a bit of time to catch up with 'em. I never really interacted with Shulk that much, same with Roy until last minute, I never got to know Shadow, me and Greninja talked a bit, and of course I'm course with Freddy. ...Dang... Two out of five I really got to know... Suddenly coming to Ponderosa after being voted out doesn't seem so bad..."

Into Crazy Hand's tent he went.

"A'ight, Crazy Hand." He almost immediately relaxed in the chair with a big grin. "Let's get this show on the road."

Getting right into business, there Master Hand's brother was, now getting the blood pressure of juror six. "Alright, Bonnie! You seemed to have a good time out there!'

"Oh, I did. Thanks."

"What was the hardest part of the game for you physically?"

"Physically?" He popped an eyebrow at that. "Hmm... Well, I guess the challenges are the only answer. My tribe was doing alright pre-swap. But once the swap hit, our luck wasn't as high as it was at the time. Chatan struggled a bit at that, but at least we won right before the merge... And afterwards, other than the last reward challenge which both me _ and_ Foxy won before he went on and voted me out, I... never won a _ single_ immunity... Dang it..."

"Hmm... I see." Crazy Hand 'nodded.' "Well, I suppose that since you never in fact won an immunity challenge post-merge, that means it must have been harder for those who have won something."

"Well, both Sheik and Foxy won twice. And Sheik's still in the game. No doubt she's probably all tired out right now." Roberts stood up as he was then ordered to step on the scale. "...150.4? ...What!?"

"Yep! That's exactly twenty pounds you lost, Bonnie! Are you proud of yourself?" If Master Hand's brother ever had a face, Bonnie probably would have found his 'grin' to be quite... _ crazy_ in somewhat of a weird sort of way. Perhaps in his mind, even the concept of _Crazy_ Hand being his medical doctor sounded a bit disturbing to him whenever he actually thought about it. He was sure at least a couple of his fellow castaways felt the same way.

Yet at the moment, he was solely focused on the weight he lost. "...I was thinking maybe ten or fifteen, but twenty? ...Ugh... I need to get to work..."

_"Yeah, didn't expect to lose that much weight. So when I exited that tent, I** really ** knew that I had to eat as soon as possible. But on the way to the café, that was when I really started to think about Crazy. ...Why would a guy like **him**, of all people, be my **doctor** for this? ...Doesn't it sound a bit... **off**? ...Hopefully it's not just me. Maybe the only reason why it doesn't seem to be that big of a concern is that he's... Master Hand's younger brother. Then again, I'm probably judging the book by its cover. I was on my way to meet everyone else, anyway. Asking them at Ponderosa was the perfect opportunity, anyway."_

Upon getting off the boat, one look at the café, and there were the other previous five jury members all patiently awaiting his arrival.

He grinned largely. "How long were you guys waiting for me?"

"It doesn't matter." Shulk shook his head. "What matters most is that your here."

He, as well as most of the other jury members embraced Bonnie by the time the rabbit made it up to them, especially Freddy.

"I'm sorry." The bear said. "I know how much this means to you. I've watched all of you tribal. By the looks of it, we don't think you shouldn't even be here..."

"No need to feel sorry for me." Bonnie still kept his smile. "If I had to be eliminated, it had to be done somehow."

"Dude..." A certain curious Greninja, however, wanted to question him straight away. "Did he actually turned on you and voted you _out_?"

"Well, basically." Roberts shrugged. "It's the only conclusion, anyway. I was the only one that voted for Shovel Knight. If I voted for Foxy in return, he would be here instead of me. Million dollar mistake that I didn't see coming, but I guess I'm here now... even if I'm... _literally_ not supposed to."

"And you are fine with that?" Shadow cocked his head to the side.

"Why wouldn't I be? Just because Foxy took advantage of what was going on and sacrificed me in order to save his own skin? ...I call that brilliant. I'd still vote for him if he's in that final three." In spite of still being one hundred percent supportive of his friend, he sighed and facepalmed. "_Unfortunately_, he's probably an even bigger threat. More than ever. Perfect time for him to start an immunity streak."

"I could see him doing it." Roy figured. "He's one of the biggest physical players remaining besides Sheik and Knuckles, anyway."

"Speaking of Knuckles,... when did _he _ decide to flip?" The Pokémon of the group still had quite a few questions.

"Did Foxy tell him to put your name down?" Fazbear raised an eyebrow.

"Let's continue this discussion inside." The eighth place finisher of the season suggested, already heading inside the Ponderosa café. "I have a feeling that you guys wanna know a whole lot more. Besides, I'm hungry and I kinda wanna look at myself."

"Mirror's all yours..." said Roy. "We're not gonna spoil you on anything."

_"Being with him since day one, I've learned Bonnie to be a pretty laid back kinda guy." Greninja stated. "He always spoke to everybody whenever he had the chance, and really knew how to help bring the team together. Sure, we weren't always on the same page apparently, but he seemed to be pretty chill about everything no matter what happened. ...I don't know if that was his strategy or not, but I think he's well liked by the people around him. Maybe that was why he had a good reception."_

"...Guys,..." He was finally staring at his reflection. "...I need a shower. ...I _really _look like I need one... If I went on another thirty-three days like this I'll probably look even more like some homeless rabbit on the street..."

Nearly all of his fellow jurors laughed.

Now he was diving into his plate of nachos that were in front of him.

"Alright, so I guess we can get to it, now." Roy decided to start the conversation which Bonnie knew was obviously coming at some point. "We already know that Foxy flipped and why. ...But, why did Knuckles flip?"

"Foxy overheard Knuckles talking with the others at the camp." He said between bites, never looking up from his plate. "According to him, he said that he was flipping in order to distance himself from me and Foxy."

...

"...That's it?" Shadow asked.

"Yep." Bonnie replied, drinking a bit of his soda. "Foxy was not at all happy about it. He said that we were all already on the bottom and he found him flipping to be kinda pointless."

"...And what about you?"

"...I think the same." He answered Shulk.

"...So that means it's basically Foxy versus everyone, right?"

"Yep..."

"Wow..." Freddy held a look of sympathy for the anthropomorphic fox back at the island. "One, two, three, four, five, _six_ against one..."

"Yeah... Foxy most likely decided to vote me out last minute since he had no other option. I thought the plan was to write down Shovel in hopes that other people would write him down, 'cause if I wrote down Foxy, it would have been a 4-4 tie. Foxy of course would have still been the target and he would have been sent here instead."

_"I have no comments on the Knuckles situation." Shadow stated. "However, over the season, me and Foxy eventually aligned with one another. At this point, he has proven that he's quite a serious competitor here. I believe that he's probably the biggest threat remaining. And so, against all odds, I'd still be rooting for him to get to the end. He was one of the few people that was willing to work with me, which actually saved my life. I strongly believe that things would have been totally different had he no formed the secret alliance of five."_

"Honestly," Bonnie took another bite. "I would be surprised, yet at the same time _unsurprised _if Foxy _somehow _makes it to the end. Understandable if he gets eliminated, but knowing him for over thirty days, he's the definition of a sneaky player."

"Valid point." Greninja nodded in agreement. "I see where you're coming from... Then again, Sheik's sneaky, too."

"Alright, then." Bonnie chortled out loud, reaching over the table to shake Greninja's hand. "Game on. Still playing Survivor at Ponderosa!"

Some time later, Roberts was finally leaving the Ponderosa with his belongings heading his way into his home.

"Obviously still saddened by the fact that I can't even make it to day thirty-nine, let alone win, but with me not being the only one here, hopefully with me bonding with the others they can help get my mind off of it. I might need as much distraction as possible until I watch the season myself when it airs. But I'll be alright. My family and friends are probably proud of me for at least making it this far."

_"I was never really in a position to play as the 'bad guy' or anything, which is good. That was my whole thing. Not ruffling feathers too early, not trying to do anything big early on, making tight, one hundred percent real relationships and me not saying much at times to make myself a threat. So my strategy... actually did play out pretty well. Just how I worked in real life, too, so I did pretty good staying true to myself I was literally never targeted until now. Maybe if I seen it coming and help vote out Foxy, that would have make me much more of at threat. Nonetheless, I'm proud of myself."_

* * *

**Day 34**

* * *

The next day, Bonnie Roberts opened the door, officially ready to start his day. It was just past ten o'clock in the morning, yet he knew he was never going to be late for breakfast. One could not have even blamed him for sleeping rather late anyway due to obvious reasons. Besides, the anthropomorphic animal was never even fond of mornings in the first place. Though what prevented him from sleeping even further was the curiosity of what Ponderosa had to bring as well as what his friends were up to.

By the time he arrived at the café, he found Shulk and Shadow exercising.

"Oh, good going, you two. You both remind me that I need to workout as well." Suddenly he decided to have a brief training session before he sat down to eat. "I'm joining."

_"There is generally a good energy here at Ponderosa right now. Sure, all five of us have different personalities, yet somehow, someway, we all get along quite well with one another and not mind anyone's company. We all wish we could have done better and make decisions that would have drastically changed the course of events, but we're all learning that it's best to take it in and learn from our own individual experiences."_

Not only he was now finally eating his food, he even desired to show the audience of what he was consuming.

"Look at this. Just look at this." He motioned the camera man to come his way, pointing at every item on his plates. "This is not normal. I'm having both pancakes _and _french toast. People say I already eat a lot back at home but I never eat like _this_. But you know what, I can't help it. ...I'm _hungry_."

_ "I think Bonnie is taking his elimination round rather well." Shulk smirked. "However, I'm... kinda worried about him. I believe that there is a difference between accepting your fate, and not **allowing **yourself to accept your fate. Maybe I'm wrong, but I feel like Bonnie is doing everything within his power to ignore the fact that he's been eliminated by distracting himself from the concept of being voted out of Survivor. I mean, he's gonna think about that at some point. ...I dunno. Maybe it's just me, but I feel like as a new friend I gotta check in on him, you know? Let him know that it's okay to open up about how bad you feel about the fact that your dreams are crushed. For most people, this is literally a once in a lifetime opportunity. Not everyone gets to even come out here."_

Luckily for the both of them, Shulk just so happened to be sitting directly across from him.

"So... How do you feel?" The heir to the Monado took a bit out of his strawberry waffles.

"Hmm..." He gave it a little thought. "I'm... content and satisfied. I was hoping to rise even higher than eighth place, but some people never even reach the merge, so I'm happy."

He blinked with a smile. "How did you feel when Master Hand snuffed your torch?"

"I..." His eyes remained on his food. "I... Honestly, I kinda felt down a little bit. Foxy took advantage of the situation and made the right choice. But,... it was just something that I didn't expect that's all. If I had the ability to read his mind, there would have been no way I would be here right now..."

"I see..." Shulk nodded. "Well, honestly Bonnie, this is the saddest I've seen you since you got here. When we were all together, you seemed to be as happy as ever. And I think you would have acted the same way had I not asked you these questions."

"..." He hung his head down with a sigh. "Okay, you're right... I figured that it's best for me to just be as happy as I can. Even though I've been voted off, I figure that there's no point in dwelling on it now. We're all gonna see this season again, and maybe that's the time we can all reflect on it together."

The blonde-haired emperor chuckled a bit. "I agree. Just wanted to let you know that it's okay to open up with others on how depressing you feel about being voted out of a game like this."

He nodded in complete understanding. "That I do know. Just trying to focus on the future on how this season would end up. But I appreciate you taking the time to check up on me."

_"Being voted out of the game is one thing. ...However, I gotta say, it's a whole other feeling knowing that even the people around you know that I'm the one that was not set to be here sitting here right now. ...And I'll be the first to say that it's not the best feeling in the world. It's not Foxy's fault. I can guarantee that even he knows what I'm feeling right now... hopefully he doesn't feel guilty about it, but most likely he is... He probably thinks that it's like... I dunno… breaking one of the rules and telling the teacher to put the blame on his best friend, me suffering the consequences. Us having that conversation at the loved ones visit was one of the last major conversations we've had. ...I'm not gonna lie. It sucks that I'm here even though I'm having the time of my life I'm at Ponderosa. But... all I can do is to continue to root for my best friend that is still in the game. He's the only one of our alliance that is still fighting. Foxy, I'm watching you."_

-/-

Getting closer to the afternoon, Bonnie found Freddy appearing to be half-asleep in the hammock.

"'Sup?"

"Hmm!?" The bear almost immediately lifted his head in surprise.

"...Oh, sorry Fred!" He laughed out loud. "I didn't know you were about to doze off."

"No, it's fine." He ran his fingers through the fur of his head with a grin of assurance. "I'm not doing anything, anyway."

_"Apparently, because of him not making it to the Loved Ones visit, Freddy's little bro actually showed up right here at Ponderosa. He did in fact tell me and Foxy that he was coming over if he made it that far, and so I told him that my little bro was coming, too. They're both around the same age, so it would have been great if we were both on that reward together... But clearly it didn't happen like that. Oh well. At least we both brought 'em out here in Japan no matter what."_

"...So it was actually _raining_ when he showed up?"

"Like,... _raining_ raining." Freddy added emphasis. "He, as well as everyone else here, all had to came to my room. We all had a great time... everyone pressured me to sing a song, and I bit into it."

He really chortled that time. "Wow. All that time on the island where people continued to ask you the sing and you waited until Ponderosa to do it."

"Well, I felt like since I was out of the game, that I could finally let my guard down, so I gave 'em what they want." The bear defended himself. "...And even though I felt kinda awkward,... it was still a little fun. I'll admit that. …Too bad you weren't there at the time. Your instrument would have fit in."

"I would have been _glad_ to play it. I brought an acoustic guitar with me that's back in my room."

"Oh yeah, and by the way," He just remembered with a snap of his fingers. "since Clyde wasn't here, I told Rodriguez all about you. We're about to make plans for a meet up when we're done with this."

"Oh, really?" He was sort of surprised. "That's great, thanks. I'm all over it."

_"It was good to talk with Bonnie." Freddy said. "Due to strategizing 24/7 on the island, I haven't talked with him as much as I talked with Foxy even though we were in the same alliance since the merge. So maybe it was good that he got voted off right after me so that we could finally have a chance to really get to know each other without any pressure on our backs from the other players."_

"So, yeah..." He went on. "Pretty neat on how the leader of the alliance is the final one _remaining_ in that alliance. Poor Foxy..."

"Oh, he'll be alright. He probably lectured Knuckles night." Though Bonnie appeared to be joking, it was something that he actually assumed. "Although, I do find it interesting that Foxy is the only one of the three of you that doesn't have a younger sibling... or any siblings at all."

"He's an only child." Freddy reminded.

"Exactly..." Suddenly Bonnie thought of something. "...You know, about that song you mentioned, if you want, I could get that guitar out of my room right now. You can sing and I'll play. It can even be the exact same song you sung last time."

Freddy gave Bonnie a humorous smirk. "Are you only suggesting that just so you can hear my voice?"

"_Maybe_..."

"..." With a blink, he once again gave in. "Oh, go get it out already. I have enough time to spare out here."

_"You know what, if it isn't obvious already, Survivor is one of the perfect opportunities to build new friendships. Survivor alone is something that we all share a common interest in. That's already a start when it comes to finding something in common. But me and Freddy? We may not have interacted with one another as much as we wanted, but we can surely start now. We both even have younger bros, both around the same age. Maybe we can both exchange a little advice to each other on what to do with them. Rodriguez and Clyde are both looking up to us, after all. So together, all four of us will pretty sure be around one another for quite a while... And I'm happy for it. One more reason why I can not wait to get back home."_

Within a few minutes, there they were. Freddy using his singing voice, Bonnie playing with his acoustic guitar along with the words that were sung. He was grateful that said guitar reunited with his owner.

"_Colors weave into a spire of flame_

_Distant sparks call to a past still unnamed_

_Bear this torch against the cold of the night_

_Search your soul and reawaken the undying light._"

And they kept playing on that time, Freddy actually desiring to sing the full song at that point.

-/-

Bonnie was actually carrying his guitar in his case, walking along the beach as he stared off at the ocean, including the birds that flew directly above it.

_"I've had the time of my life out here. ...Wish it never ended. Not just because I didn't get to the end of the game, but also because that I simply... didn't want my Survivor experience to end out there. I mean I do wanna go home, but the other half of me just wants to continue to talk and bond with everyone else... Maybe all twenty of us can be at Ponderosa, haha!"_

Due to Roberts's suggestion, he and Fazbear actually decided to perform in front of the other jurors. Even Shadow the Hedgehog was in fact curious of their performance.

_"Guess my game was all about trying to get along with everyone and just, you know, taking the time to get to know others. I may not know everything about everybody out here, but at least as long as I know at least a bit about everyone, I suppose that's a start. We were all in this together and we will all leave this together, and hopefully we can all sit at that reunion show reminiscing on what this season was. And for me personally, that would be my closure if this is the one time I got to play this game: ending things with a happy, satisfying note. May this experience forever be with us for the rest of our lives."_

* * *

**These Ponderosa chapters keep getting longer and longer. Nonetheless, it's for a good cause. I _really_ had a good time writing this one. I am really connecting with each and every one of these jurors more and more. One thing about Fanfiction is that you actually get to connect with your characters even though we're the ones writing them. And that honestly is the best feeling in the world!**

**Now for Bonnie in particular, I feel that he played a great under the radar game. Only thing was like he said himself: if he had the ability to read Foxy's mind last minute at that tribal, he would have written his name down as well after Foxy written his, and _he _ would have been juror number six instead lol. So it was kinda funny, yet very unfortunate that Bonnie was accidentally voted out.**

**Questions:**

**1\. Did you enjoy Bonnie as a character?**

**2\. What are your honest thoughts about his game? Like/dislikes?**

**3\. How far do you think Bonnie would have gotten if things played differently?**

**If you liked Bonnie, it is not too late to vote for him, as well as your other top players of the season. So if you haven't already, vote on my poll and watch my intro of the season on YouTube and I will see you all next time with juror number seven!**


	7. Chapter 7: Juror 7

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 7 - Juror 7

**Welcome back to another chapter of "Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa!" So just ahead of the Survivor - Emperors vs Knights finale that's officially going to start on Wednesday, I knew I had to get at least one more chapter out before then. And luckily I was free for the most part of today, and Knuckles is already not a character I'm already greatly familiar with, but one of my favorite Sonic characters. Thus, he shouldn't be that hard to do when it comes to personality and everything.**

**Now Knuckles the Echidna was blindsided at the final seven thanks to Sheik and her alliance assuming that Knuckles was going to be harder to get rid of when it came to the challenges in spite of Foxy Michaels being the overall bigger threat to win. Basically a gamble. And I suppose karma really got to Knuckles after he turned on his former alliance lol.**

**Let's see how he reflects on himself as well as his gameplay. Maybe he'll even bring up Sonic for a bit...**

**~KF**

* * *

_"'Sup, I'm Knuckles. I'm juror number seven, and welcome to my Ponderosa."_

* * *

**Night 35**

* * *

Taking his time wandering past the torches that helped him remain on the pathway, Knuckles the Echidna from the planet Mobius was already shaking his head in disbelief.

"I got blindsided... I got blindsided when I least expected it. I put my guard down for one tribal and now I'm out of the game. I knew I should've won that challenge..." Though he had a large smirk across his face, it was only his exterior. His interior on the other hand expressed his inner feelings of regret and a bit of annoyance. "Wow..."

_"I wanted to get to the end of the game and win the money just so that I can really prove myself out here. ...I mean, I did bring my full self to the table and all, but part of me is nagging saying that I should have listened to Foxy and stuck with my original alliance. Maybe I had a much bigger shot at getting to the end with him and Bonnie because all you do is count. One, two, three. I was locked in... Ugh... So unsatisfying..."_

"I've shown that I wanted to stay loyal to them, but they decided to throw me away since they figured they didn't need me anymore..." He continued to complain. "I don't blame them, I guess... That's their gameplay... But do they really need Marth, then?"

_"There were only two votes for Foxy at that tribal. And most likely the only other person that voted with me was Marth. So... I applaud Marth for simply sticking to the plan, even though he clearly didn't know that Foxy was gonna stay tonight. Now he's in a bad spot and I won't even be surprised if he's the next to go."_

Time to meet Doctor Crazy Hand.

"'Sup, doc?"

"Hello there, Knuckles!" Master Hand's younger brother opened up the medical tent to allow him inside. "So, what did you think about your time on Survivor?"

"...Uh..." He laughed in reaction, plopping himself down in a black chair nearby. "If I were to describe everything I think we'll be here all night and I'll never get to Ponderosa."

"Oh, that's okay. I understand." He 'nodded.' "Survivor is such an adventurous experience... Sometimes even I would wonder what it would be like if I was on there, but since I'm just a giant floating hand, it's impossible for me. I'm already part of Master Hand's crew, who clearly can't be a contestant of his own show. So I guess this would have to do. But anyway, let's get your blood pressure and then I'll have you step on the scale."

"A'ight. I mean I doubt I lost that much out there, but whatever..."

_"I guess I'll focus on the positives right now. Let me see what I accomplished out here... I wasn't the first one voted out of the game, nor my tribe... I made it to a swap... I made it to the merge... I didn't win immunity, but I came close... And I went top ten this season... Okay, so it could've been better. Clearly. But, I was almost gone a couple times. And I at least made to the Loved Ones visit where me and Sonic reunited."_

_He chortled at this last part. "I wouldn't be surprised if he's the very first one to click on this video."_

"Let's see... Your weight was 88.0 pounds when we first started, and right now you weigh 79.2 pounds. So that means you lost exactly 8.8 pounds, Knuckles." He too notes on his clipboard, before suddenly hitting the clipboard hard when his pencil for some weird reason, creating a bit dot as a result. "How do you feel about that?"

"...Most likely all the others lost way more weight than I did. I know it." He folded his arms as he eyes remained focused on the numbers on the scale. "So maybe it wouldn't take that much for me to gain these 8.8 pounds back..."

_"Honestly for a guy like me, worrying about how much did I weight after coming off of Survivor is the least of my problems. However, I'm hungry. I'm just ready to head to the café and chat with the others who have been voted out before me. I'm quite curious to what Shadow thinks of me at this point, after all."_

Upon him getting off the boat saying his goodbyes to Crazy, the Mobian had a hand over his eyes to see what was in the distance. Six familiar figures all came into view, forcing a smirk across his face.

"Knux, I know you're faster than this!" Shulk's voice boomed. "Hurry up!"

He chuckled. "Well, I'm taking my time for once. I'm tired but I'll be there."

_"So Knuckles gets sent home right after I got blindsided last tribal." Bonnie Roberts spoke. "Haha, I'm sorry. But I kinda find that part funny a little bit. Maybe it showed him that turning against me and Foxy was not the best move to make? Sure, all three of us were on the bottom anyway, but he kinda made things worse. However, it's not like I want him to feel bad or anything. Tonight is his night and I just wanna talk to him to make him feel good, you know. He could have went home a lot earlier, so I gotta give him props for that."_

Thus, Bonnie chose to be the first one to embrace Knuckles, most of the other castaways following suit, Greninja even rubbing his head.

"Hey, stop that! You know Rogue used to do that before we went after each other!"

"You're lucky he didn't went for your dreads." Roy pointed out, the other jurors bringing the new juror in.

"You gotta take a look at yourself real quick. But spoiler alert: you physical appearance has barely changed at all like mine." Bonnie gave him a warning just to possibly lower his friend's expectations."

"..."

And he was right. Only thing that changed about the Sonic's friend's appearance was that his fur appeared a bit dirtier than before.

"...Alright, I need to shower." He immediately walked away. "Let's sit down and eat. I'm starving."

"You have the menu."

_"I am **so **glad that I am at this café here. You will not believe how much food they have. There was so much food I kinda forgot how much I ordered. Apparently I ordered the most out of everyone here so far, and I'm the lightest here!"_

"...Seriously?" Shulk could not have believed the amount of food that kept being placed in front of the echidna. "Steak, a burger, _ and _ pizza? ...This is gonna make me feel embarrassed! I thought I ate a lot!"

"Me too..." Freddy Fazbear stared with astonishment.

"Same here..." Bonnie blinked. "...And you don't weigh nearly as much as the rest of us! Can I have some of that?"

The red-furred former member of the Chatan tribe smacked Bonnie's hand away. "You got your own food!"

Nearly everyone laughed in reaction. But then a few minutes later, strategy talk began, starting with Greninja.

"Alright, so you were the one that was voted off tonight... I don't think Marth knew about the plan that you were the one that was gonna get the boot... Why do you think that was the case?"

"Well, the only thing I can think of is that us two were the most likely to work together again, since Foxy confronted me after I turned on my alliance..." He briefly looked at Roberts. "My apologies, by the way. I knew what I did was wrong..."

He smirked and nodded. "You are forgiven."

"Cool, so we can just root for Foxy at this point." He stated, facing the Pokémon once more. "But anyway, they were probably scared that me and Marth was gonna come up with sumn… And you know what, if that was the case, they were actually right. Marth did told me that if I flipped, both of us would have had more power in the Chatan Alliance... So the probably found that to be a problem and they voted me out... I don't know I had to leave over Foxy, though. But I guess that's their problem."

"...Wait a minute..." Shadow for the first time began to talk. "Something tells me that there is more to the story here. ...If you knew that flipping on your part wasn't the best idea,... and Marth told you about what would happen if you _did_ flip,... and if the Chatan Alliance knew what was going to take place..."

Some of the other members of the jury also exchanged glances, sort of figuring out what was Shadow the Hedgehog getting at.

Freddy blinked and eyed Knuckles directly. "...Knuckles?"

"Yeah...?"

"...I think Marth played you."

"...What?"

"I mean, think about it." He had to elaborate. "All this put together basically means that... Marth kinda used you just so that he can please Sheik and the rest of the Chatan Alliance."

"Agreed." Greninja backed him up. "Marth used you just to satisfy his own agenda."

"..."

...

Literally the entire table was silent, nobody even taking a bite of anything.

"..." If Knuckles certainly did not feel foolish before, he certainly was now.

_"Ugh..." Thinking it over, he buried his hand in his lap. "What have I done? Now I feel like I owe Foxy an apology..."_

He dropped his fork with the heaviest sigh, resting his head in his right hand, supported by his elbow. "Oh, Chaos... Foxy was right... If Sonic was here right now, he would have called me a big Knucklehead for it..."

"Hey, what happened, happened. I'm sure the best thing to do is to root for Foxy like you said." Freddy glanced at the bright side. "You'll feel better tomorrow after you have a good night's sleep."

-/-

And nearly half an hour later, there he was off to his home right next to Bonnie's.

"Whew..." He said with a shake of his head. "Can't wait to hit the sheets. I'm exhausted. Ready to get all this dirt out of my dreads..."

_"For some reason I thought of Rouge when it came to washing my dreads out by the time I got in the shower..."_

His voice sounded from his bathroom.

"...Aw, _man_..." The nineteen year old complained. "This dirt is ridiculous... No wonder I got voted off. Having this dirt in my dreads is anything but attractive..."

_"Since Rouge decided to play the flirt card with three different guys on my tribe, I sorta thought of her a little, since believe it or not, she's not the only girl that's pointed out my dreads. Back on Mobius, multiple women approach complimenting them. Not saying that I'm the romance type or anything... I actually find it funny! So that means if I don't take special care of 'em, I can't laugh as much to brighten up my day. Guess that's one reason to why personal hygiene is important."_

* * *

**Day 36**

* * *

"On your mark..."

Knuckles, Greninja, and Shadow were all standing side by side in the sand, completely ignoring the ocean next to them.

"Get _set_..."

Upon getting in starting positions, there was Freddy Fazbear coaching them to prepare themselves.

"..._**GO**_!"

Immediately after he gave them the okay, the three contestants all sprinted off in action, passing Bonnie, Shulk, and Roy who were both standing off to the side to watch them race along.

_"So before we all ate breakfast today, to get our blood going and to wake everybody up, I decided to challenge some of the others for a race. We were running along to the dock where every one of us got dropped off by the boat, and back to the café. And, whew... That was a challenge... Freddy should have started the challenge the way Master Hand always did, but I guess he didn't think about that..."_

By the time they all came back, Shadow managed to beat the other two by a few seconds.

"...I'm last?" Knuckles was a little dumbfounded. "...Really?"

Greninja snickered. "Foxy probably would have beaten you too if he was here. He already beat ya in that other challenge at the final twelve."

_"I won." Shadow smirked confidently. "As expected."_

"I would have won..." Knuckles attempted at playing it off as if he desired to give Shadow a chance. "I was just... trying to give ya a bit of a head start."

"Psh…" The hedgehog saw right through him. "Need I remind you of when we faced off against each other for the first time at the second immunity challenge. Who won that time? I'll give you a few seconds to think."

He groaned in defeat, even playfully punching Shadow in the shoulder. "Alright, alright, you won... We can go eat now..."

Watching him head to the café for breakfast, Shadow crossed his arms and actually snickered a little. For most people, if they had the nerve to punch him in the shoulder like that, looks alone would have been more than enough to kill. Though for Knuckles, for some reason he chose to let it slide. He knew that Knuckles never even though about whatever consequences upon him even laying a finger on the fellow Mobian.

_"So Shadow along with Foxy was my main ally in this game... And... I... guess it kinda felt natural that we ended up aligning with each other. He saved my back, I saved his, and we both... well... **almost **made a bit move together in the merge. But yeah, it felt natural because we're both anthropomorphic animals coming from Mobius. Though surprisingly, he has never heard of Sonic. He's been on quite a few adventures around Mobius and I even helped him out at times. Though, after this, I'm sure he's gonna meet him eventually. Might as well give a brief overview of him."_

To his surprise, Shadow actually took time out of his day to sit down with Knuckles and have a one on one talk with one another, both sitting in beach chairs with their ankles crossed. Usually he would either be in his room, or somewhere else all alone. A miracle.

"So about Sonic..." Knuckles started off. "He's been my friends for quite a few years, now. We both met up after we were both kinda rivaling each other. We both actually fought until the point where Sonic actually needed me for something when it came to one of his adventures."

"What kind of confrontation was it?" The black hedgehog with red highlights was already struck with curiosity. "Argumentative or physical?"

"A little bit of both. I thought he wanted to steal something that I had so we fought over it." He explained. "But in the end,... we both decided that we kinda needed to help each other out. By the time Sonic's adventure was done, he began to actually talk with me a bit for, and turns out we had way more in common than we thought... And... the rest is pretty much history. As a matter of fact, he's the reason why I applied for the show."

"Hmph…" He glanced away. "And one time you've also spoken of that he apparently has the record of the 'fastest person alive' in all of Mobius..."

Knuckles snickered. "Have you at least heard of that?"

"That I'm aware of. I just never knew of the name, but now I will keep that in mind..."

"How come? It is not like you have a strong chance of beating him or anything."

That was when he faced his fellow Mobian right in the eyes. "You saying that he will beat him in a landslide? Even if he actually wins, I doubt it'd be by that much. If I raced him, we'd probably be neck and neck."

The echidna chortled at that. "Sure, whatever you say. Maybe all three of us can meet up and see for ourselves..."

"I have no problems with that. Just give me the call and I'll see when I'm available..." Though he shifted his head away for a bit, he turned to him once more. "And the other one?"

"Huh?"

"You still have yet to tell me about this Rouge person even after I've already expressed my interest during one of our conversations back on the island."

_"I mean, sure Shadow can be a bit cold-hearted at times, but for me and particular, I feel like us two can actually become good friends... And I bet even he knows it..."_

"Like,... me, Foxy, _and _Greninja?" Knuckles was now recalling of Rouge's actions during the time where she was still part of the season. "That's _three _guys! Like, I know that was probably her intention by wrapping around as many men around her finger as possible, but she... she just played too hard, man. I'm sorry, haha!"

Shadow actually laughed as well. "And you say she's a spy?"

"Yep. Right on Mobius."

"Hmm..." He began thinking out loud. "...I'll admit. That does capture my interest. I'm pretty sure she wouldn't be that hard to find, especially with this thing going on. I'll see what she's like myself."

"Why? You fallin' for it?" The echidna teased.

"Oh, stop messing with me. I am Shadow the Hedgehog. You should know I'm not easily tricked... _Knucklehead_..."

"Hey!" He shot a friendly glare. "Just because we are bringing Sonic up now does not mean you gotta shove his most infamous remark about me right in my face!"

_"I am well aware of the whole social aspect of the show." Shadow stated. "However, I am not afraid to admit that I am a biggest fan of small talk. Not to say that it is something I am fond of, it is just that it's something that is simply not really much a priority. Though certain things do interest me. Me and Knuckles surprisingly get along rather well. I don't know how much we really have in common, but I suppose we are **somewhat** similar personality wise. I'll continue having conversations with him outside of this game in order to learn more about him..."_

-/-

Later on in the afternoon, Knuckles was now seen napping in the hammock.

_"Even though it wasn't my idea to apply for the show, I still think it was well worth it. I'm glad I was recommended to try out Survivor. Knowing of what I went through when I was a kid, I figured that it sort of gave me the advantage out here in the wilderness... even though the hunger problem even got the best of me... It was a challenge, but good thing I got to be on rewards. But overall, even though my experience was cut short, once I got past that Rouge vote, I took the opportunity to push myself to go as far as I can. Sure, I could have made it even further, possibly final three if it weren't for my dumb mistakes, but at least I moved up ten more places than placing seventeenth. Big improvement on my end."_

Shortly afterwards, he found himself racing against the same opponents yet again, even resulting in the same place as before.

"Aw, come on!"

_"I was curious if this game was gonna teach me something, 'cause from what I heard, everybody learns something out here no matter it is. I haven't really thought about what I really learned out here yet, so I guess it'll come to me eventually. Though considering on what I went through in real life, especially since I've been through years of surviving all on my own with no one around for the most part thanks to me being the last of my kind,... I guess patience does play a big part out here as well. So it's like the old saying goes: if I can survive Survivor, then I can pretty much get through anything. ...Oh, what do you know? Maybe patience is the number one thing I had to learn out here. Thank you, Survivor, for teaching me. I'll give my shoutout to you, the master, and even Sonic. We'll compare our games when I get back home."_

* * *

**Alright, Knuckles ruined it. The chapters kept getting longer and longer and Knuckles just broke that trend lol. Though it's still almost 4,000 words so not too bad.**

**So yeah, seven chapters down, only three more to go. And I suppose that was the last of the Sonic characters this season. And for Knuckles, even though he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, seventh place is still amazing and I'll take that over seventeenth place anyday lol.**

**Questions:**

**1\. Did you like Knuckles as a character?**

**2\. What do you think about his game? Likes/dislikes? Criticisms?**

**3\. (For those who read Kodai Island) What comparisons would you guys make with the only Sonic character last season? (Warning: For those who haven't read that story yet, you might wanna avoid reading reviews if you don't wanna be spoiled.)**

**If you enjoyed Knuckles, feel free to vote for him on my poll. I'll see you all next chapter!**


	8. Chapter 8: Juror 8

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 8 - Juror 8

**Hello, everyone! Yes, this fic is still going on. No matter how late these last few chapters are, this story is going to be finished long before I start the next season. As you are already aware, I am very behind with this Ponderosa series, and I kinda wanted to finish the main fic first. The last chapter of the main story will be posted soon, though I feel like I'm lucky here because in the actual real TV series, the last couple Ponderosa videos are posted the morning after the reunion show, so I'm good lol.**

**This chapter is going to be all about the final FNAF character this season, Foxy Michaels. He got eliminated in sixth place after being idol'd out by Shovel Knight and from being the only one on the bottom. The fox was probably one of the smartest players of the season, and actually played rather well. He played quietly until he knew when was the right time to strike (even though it didn't work out), he had a great social game, great strategic game, and did well in challenges most of the time. Thus, he was literally an all around threat to win if he was in the final three.**

**So from his perspective, he's gonna have to see his closest ally who he voted off (Bonnie), Freddy (one of his main allies since the swap), and Knuckles (who he confronted for turning on his alliance).**

**~KF**

* * *

**Night 36**

* * *

Juror number eight made his way down the path, further escaping from the dreaded Tribal Council area.

"Oh well… I have no reason to be a sore loser about it. There are nineteen other players that were with me, and I just wasn't picked to be the winner of this season. Fair enough, I suppose…"

He kicked a rock out of the way.

"_Man… Didn't even get the majority of the votes, but I got idol'd out of the game, and now I'm not in the competition anymore. Sure I could say that Shovel Knight played me, but hey, I was just doing what I was told because I was all on my own, anyway. Just Captain Foxy. Me, myself, and I. And if this is how I'm gonna get eliminated, then this seems sort of a satisfying ending. I'll be alright…"_

"I tried my absolute hardest to balance both the strategic and social aspects of the game…" He talked as he continued to walk, staring at the ground all the while. "And… Perhaps that's why people thought of me to be a threat. I mean, I sacrificed my number one ally, Bonnie, for crying out loud since I knew I had it coming. ...And that only made things even worse. Maybe the Survivor Gods thought that I just had to go… Pretty fitting on how the captain is the last of his alliance…"

Pretty soon he made it to Crazy Hand's tent.

"'Sup?"

"Hello, Foxy! You've done quite well this season! How are you feeling physically?" The younger brother of the host of Survivor greeted.

"How I feel physically?" He popped an eyebrow. "I guess I was alright. I complained of the hunger situation a couple times, yet I still won a couple challenges. But overall my body is okay. Good thing I went on that spa reward…"

"_Hmm… I guess I should set an example if this is some person's first time ever seeing a Ponderosa video. Allow me to give you the rundown: Survivor exposes your highest highs and your lowest lows. Your full self is brought to the table as you deal with people that will like you, backstab you, and eventually vote you out of the island. And if you are voted out, you will be here like me… reminiscing the events of the game while at the same time, you will… have some kind of hole in your heart because your dreams are crushed. Now I have to go through the pain with all the people that got voted out before I did on this jury…" He sighed in response. "Now I gotta watch myself be voted off on TV…"_

Following the large, white-gloved hand checking his blood pressure, Michaels was ordered to step on the scale.

"I mean I'm a pretty slim guy, so I don't expect to be that much…"

And he looked down.

"Okay, so I weighed 155.2 when we started off…"

"And how much do you weigh now?"

"...138.4…" He blinked.

"...So that means you've lost 16.8 pounds to be exact, Foxy." Crazy Hand took notes on his clipboard. "I shall keep this in my record. Now then, are you planning on putting the weight back on? Or do you plan on keeping it off?"

"You kidding me?" He grinned. "I'm ready to eat! I'm not trying to be some stick figure here."

"_Bonnie likes to eat a lot, too. So maybe the food will help the both of us get the game off our minds even though we're all gonna talk about the game, anyway. But with food in front of us, maybe it won't be so bad…"_

He was now leaving the boat.

"_Alright, so I was getting off the boat so I can walk to the cafe… As far as the jury is concerned, I don't think I've talked with Shulk as much as I liked, so maybe I can use this time to make it up to him… Roy and Greinja would be pretty cool with me being here. Shadow would probably be mad seeing me here considering that I was the alliance's last hope... Knuckles I don't know what he's gonna think… And then there's Freddy and Bonnie."_

And upon him being noticed by being warmly welcomed from the other members of the jury, Freddy Fazbear stood in the center of the steps with extended arms, Foxy taking the hint as the two friendly embraced, Greninja rubbing his back in the process.

"Such a shame you were eliminated…" Shadow spoke shaking his head. "You were almost there…"

"Yeah, I know, but at least I went out with a bang." He laughed humorously, suddenly reaching Knuckles's hand to shake it. "'Sup, buddy? ...Sorry if I came out too strong the other night…"

"Dude, you know you don't need to apologize. I only have myself to blame." The echidna grinned assuring him that he had nothing to worry about.

"Alright, we're good then."

"_Foxy's reception was positive." Shulk commented. "I mean, we were literally never on the same page game-wise, but imagine if I was in the same alliance as him, things would have been an entirely different story. You gotta admit: he played __**hard**__."_

The jury members actually allowed Foxy Michaels to walk into Ponderosa first. Though in reality, it was all a plan for another juror to introduce himself.

Before Foxy could step anywhere closer to the mirror that was a few feet away from him, he was greeted by a flower necklace from none other than Bonnie Roberts himself.

"Oh… _Oh_, hello there!" He immediately faced the culprit before embracing his best friend.

"Welcome, bud"

"Hi." He replied, grinning out of sarcasm almost immediately. "I voted you off…"

"And I would have voted you off, too, had I known better and predicted the future." The bunny responded. "But, trust me. It was clearly a good move. You would have gone home if you didn't vote me out, so kind of a nice sacrifice in my opinion even though I paid the price…"

"Yeah, you could say that." He knew he had a point. "But, don't think that it was supposed to be that way. I really wanted the both of us to make it even further together to avenge the alliance…"

"Well, look at it this way." Bonnie figured it was best to think positive by adding a little bit of humor into it. "I got eliminated by accident, you got idol'd out when Shovel Knight was apparently set to go home, so now we're even."

"Karma for the captain… That I can live with, though."

"_Aside from me feeling terrible to this day for not making things easier for my core alliance," Knuckles was now speaking. "at least Foxy had Bonnie with him. Those two are like the two troublemakers in class, like how people would describe me and Sonic… Hey, that __**is **__quite a similarity. All four of us are either red or blue… Yeah, Sonic would fit in perfectly. No doubt. No wonder we all got along…"_

He was now staring in the mirror. "Hmm… I look a bit alright even though I probably stink like a skunk."

"You actually don't smell that bad." Roy disagreed. "Didn't you go on that reward where you had a shower or something? You were lucky."

"_The moment when Foxy had his torch snuffed, my heart immediately sank to my stomach…" Freddy appeared rather saddened. "I mean, of course I'm gonna feel bad for him, but… I really liked that guy. He was the only reason why I stayed longer, he went all the way out there just to protect me, Bonnie, Knuckles, and Shadow,... like, no doubt we all would have voted for him in the end. That was probably the main reason why some people still voted him out over Shovel Knight."_

A big plate of quesadillas were placed in front of him, followed by a plate of nachos a few seconds later.

Roy eyed his plate and lifted an eyebrow. "...Are you _trying_ to get a stomach ache?"

"Hey, I still got some time left here." He looked at nothing but his food and immediately began eating. "I'm hungry."

"You didn't order as much as I did."

"Shut up, Bonnie…"

He smirked evily in reply. "Well, I can't really shut up at the moment, now that we're gonna talk about your elimination."

"Very well…"

"_I knew I trusted the right person." Bonnie was grinning more than ever. "The moment where we started connecting back on day one or day two, whichever day it was, I knew he was going to be my number one ally. But, I wanted to make sure he was with at our first tribal, so I convinced him to vote however I'm voting. And of course, I didn't know things were gonna come to this."_

Roy chose to ask the first question. "So, do you know who voted for you, or you have no idea at all?"

"I think I know exactly who voted for me." He nodded in complete confidence, speaking between bites. "I tried pitting Sheik and Shovel Knight against each other at the final seven to get the target off my back, and I guess that continued to this very day. Shovel Knight actually started to grow scared of Sheik, so me and him talked and told me last minute to write Marth's name down to 'test Sheik' he says. Luigi was his right hand man, so of course he's gonna do whatever he says. ...But I guess their guts told them that Sheik might have been telling the truth (which turned out to be a lie obviously), and they voted for me anyway, while Sheik, Marth, and Zelda put Shovel's name down. Long story short, if Shovel knew that Sheik was gunning for him, I wouldn't be sitting here right now."

"Well, if things are gonna be like that between Sheik and Shovel Knight now, I guess your plan worked _somewhat_." Bonnie told him, taking a bit of his spaghetti. "If it's Sheik and Zelda on one side, and Shovel and Luigi on the other…"

"-then that means that Marth is a swing vote." Roy finished for him with a sigh. "I wonder how he'll choose."

"They're both just as threatening." said Shulk. "I doubt either choice is wrong, except that Sheik is more likely to win the final immunity challenge."

Foxy was chewing and swallowing food as if he never done so before. "Well personally, I'd much prefer Sheik to get the boot. She was probably my main enemy because we're just the same in both of the alliances, so she has to go."

"Won't be surprised if Marth is motivated enough to get rid of her, actually…" The Pokemon of the group shrugged his shoulders. "I mean, clearly I like Sheik, but I'm gonna be unbiased. Realistically, I'd give her a thirty-five to forty percent chance of making it out alive next tribal…"

"_Sure, he was apparently playing behind the scenes behind my back for almost the entire time," Greninja sat on the steps of the cafe. "but, Foxy is clearly smart. Like Sheik, he literally fought for his alliance. Sheik was the leader for our alliance, Foxy was the leader for his, and he did a great job protecting them… for the most part, anyway, haha! If only he was in the Chatan Alliance. That probably would have given us an extra boost… But knowing that the Chatan Alliance already won anyway, I suppose it doesn't really matter for me even though my two closest allies are likely gonna go after each other with Luigi in the mix."_

The fox was now on his way to his new home for the next three days. "Time to make myself comfortable. I'm gonna be here for a short while…"

"_Now that the Survivor part is out of the way, I actually can't wait to actually relax on Kodai Island. I've been on that reward at the final eleven for crying out loud so I can't wait to get started. Hopefully it's sunny tomorrow morning."_

* * *

**Day 37**

* * *

The following morning, Foxy actually woke up a bit earlier than he expected. It was just about half past eight when he wandered in the cafe for breakfast. Perhaps it was the thought of food that got the better of him, considering that similar to a certain ally he worked with, he had quite an appetite.

Then again, Bonnie was never much of a morning person. Thus, he was not awake at the time. However, Knuckles and Greninja were. Three original Chatan members having a meal together never sounded like a bad idea at all.

Greninja actually pointed that out. "Alright, so these three knights are the only ones here at the moment."

"I'd say it's a nice opportunity." Knuckles smirked.

"_So at breakfast it was me, Knuckles, and Greninja. Knuckles and I are already friends, but my relationship with Greninja was never as strong as say, he and Sheik, or myself with anyone from my alliance. So I say it was a good thing that we can finally connect. We're both huge fans of the show, so that's already something."_

"Alright, so what season should we talk about first?" The Pokemon questioned.

"Hmm…" He thought out loud as he ate his blueberry pancakes. "I dunno. There are so many to choose from."

"Guess I'm picking then. Let's start with Cagayan."

"Good choice." He bobbed his head up and down even though his breakfast was receiving most of his attention at the time. "We just gotta make sure anything we spoil doesn't get in the final edit of this Ponderosa video."

Both he and Knuckles shared a laugh.

"I guess we can start by how iconic the cast was, then." He concluded. "Favorites?"

"_Unfortunately for Foxy, his luck ran out." Shulk sat by the water in the sand. "I don't think there was anything else he could have done, except for maybe find an idol or win another immunity… which of course isn't as easy as it sounds. But other than that, there was literally nothing else he could have done. He gave it his all, and that was pretty much all he had. He really deserved to win."_

Luckily for the heir to the Monado, he did not miss out on the entire conversation, since he chose to show up a few minutes later.

"Oh, there you are, Shulk!" Greninja grinned. "Hurry up and sit down. We're talking about the other seasons."

"Oh, really? Count me in!"

* * *

Later on in the day, thought it appeared to be cloudy out, there was never really much of a sign that it was going to rain that day, so nobody really paid attention to it.

Then all of a sudden, Foxy, Bonnie, and Freddy all came into view chatting walking and chatting along, Foxy decided to cross his ankles relaxing in the hammock that he approached while the other two sat in beach chairs.

"_I knew that me and my two best friends in the game, Bonnie and Freddy, were gonna have some time to talk with one another. We just didn't know when. But it had to happen. The three of us talked with each other a bit on the island, yet to the alliances, paranoia, and strategizing, it wasn't enough. Ponderosa provides so many opportunities for people to connect. Sure, me being voted out of the game is something I gotta live with for the rest of my life, but being with these two guys over here suddenly doesn't make things so bad. We will without a doubt be best friends for life."_

"So Freddy, apparently Rodriguez came here at Ponderosa when it was raining."

"Yeah, he did." Freddy nodded. It became apparent that at some point in the game, he and Foxy had some type of talk where Freddy mentioned his brother.

"Cool. Guess at least all three of us had our loves one come out here somehow. But I'm still jealous." Foxy laughed in reply. "Not only I don't have a younger sibling, I don't have any siblings in general. I'm an only child."

"You should consider yourself lucky to an extent, though." Bonnie commented. "They get into your fur half the time."

Fazbear nodded in complete agreement.

"You're probably right in a way, though I honestly wonder what it's like."

"Ah well, maybe Clyde can come to your house or something. Just don't cut off his hand behind my back and you two would get along."

He immediately shot Bonnie with a humorous glare. "How does that make sense, Bonnie? If I didn't cut off my own hand, why would I cut off your brother's?"

"I dunno." Completely unfazed by his glare, he simply shrugged and stretched out to put his right arm behind his head. "Though you may not have cut your own hand, we've only known each other for a month. How am I supposed to know what are you gonna do with him? Freddy works in the kitchen with a restaurant. Won't be surprised if he is malicious as well."

He stared at the sixth member of the jury as if he had two heads. "..._What_?"

"I don't think I'll trust him with knives."

He facepalmed at that, causing Foxy to burst out laughing.

The oldest of the trio of FNAF characters sighed and buried his face in his hands. "Way to defame my character… You two are just something else…"

"_I was wondering if Foxy was actually going to get voted off." Freddy stated. "Sure, he had my vote, but at the same time, the only reason to why I actually wanted him to come here was just so that me, him, and Bonnie could spend some time with one another before the game ends. That's why when he got eliminated, I was sad for him, but then again, he was the one person I needed here, since Bonnie got voted out right after me."_

"I'll be back."

The bear actually got up and headed for the bathroom in his house, leaving the two knights alone.

…

"...Well?"

"Well, what?" Foxy questioned Bonnie.

"...Aren't ya gonna thank me for saving your life?"

"Look, Bonnie, I told ya thanks like ten times in the game already." He replied. "Each and every single day out there I became more thankful for you because as the Tribal Councils went on, I kept on thinking on what would have happened if I was on the bottom."

"_So, yeah. I do realize had I not vote with Bonnie, there was no telling on what could have happened in my game. Day six when we had to go to tribal, the plan was to vote for Luigi. But thanks to the Chatan Four, the target changed to Cloud. And I was actually dumb enough to realize that Cloud already had the majority of the votes even without me. That was probably one of my few mistakes. I definitely didn't want to vote for Cloud at the time, but if I didn't, I would have been on the bottom with Knuckles and Rouge, and who knows what could have happened. So as much as I was more on the radar in the game than Bonnie, it was that one subtle move by him recruiting me, that actually impacted most of the season. So I mean, why wouldn't I give him credit?"_

Thus, after a few more seconds filled with nothing but silence, Foxy gradually turned his head and faced him. "...Thanks… again…"

"Aw, no problem bud!"

"Seriously." He grinned. "I might have said it a million tiimes already, but I don't want the fact that you kept me in the loop to go unnoticed when people see our season."

"They'll already know the moment when they see it, but alright."

-/-

"Admitted your feelings for Rouge yet?"

Foxy Michaels decided to test Knuckles the Echidna by bringing up the bat that placed seventeenth place in the season all the way back in the pre-merge phase.

"..." He stared blankly as a result. "Don't play funny…"

"I mean, just sayin'." Michaels's sarcasm took over. "You may be not on the best of terms with her, but they're not playing around when they say that opposites attract."

"_Like I've said before, I love this game to death. When I came out here, I knew what my goal was gonna be. I was trying to figure out how the heck can I balance my social game with my strategic game. There are players that are little too rough around the edges, but then there are playing who have no particular strategy going for 'em, resulting in them to become goats at the end. And I'll admit: I prefer to strategize, but I am well aware that just strategy is not enough. I knew I had to build long lasting relationships out there. And what happens? Not only I did build those relationships that impacted the game, the relationships that I've built with others do seem like they will actually last a lifetime… So in the end, I couldn't be any happier."_

"But anyway, you say that some guy named Espio is guarding the Master Emerald while you are away, right?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, so since you're gonna go back to your daily duties on Mobius, I suppose I could come to you and visit you sometimes."

He smirked. "That would be fine."

"I mean, after all you went through, I hate for you to be alone on the time. I'll fit right in your home world."

"Well, trust me. I actually don't mind being alone, since I've been used to it for so long." Knuckles admitted shaking his head. "However, I suppose a little company wouldn't hurt. If you want to bring someone else with you, go ahead."

"Good. Can't wait." He grinned. "I wonder what it's like to be on an island floating in mid-air... And by the way,... Shadow wanted to tell you something but you were busy doing something else."

"What is it?"

"...He just wanted to say thanks for all you done for our alliance."

"..." Hearing a nice comment like that from Shadow the Hedgehog of all people, that honestly made the pirate fox feel rather good. "...Really?"

"No kidding. He'd figured it was best if you hear it from me instead of him directly, since he said he was not the best at 'these kind of things' if you know what I mean... But still, he's quite thankful of all that you've done... and I believe him. If it wasn't for you, I don't even think our first plan to keep Freddy around would have worked. I don't even think I would have made it to the swap."

"...Tell him I said thanks in reply." He waved it off. "And I mean it."

"_Survivor is fun. Yeah, I know that Survivor is not for everyone, but it's fun. I definitely recommend people to try it out as long as you know what to do. Sure, your chances of winning are typically low, but there is more to it than just winning. It's kinda neat that you basically have to build solid relationships out there, because the relationships that occur typically aren't forced. You do get along with people that walk along the same path. And the more you get along with them, the more likely they want to work with you… and now, look what happened with me. Now I have friendships that will last forever. ...So I believe that even if you don't win, for all future fans out there, don't waste major opportunities to make relationships that would last, just as much as you wouldn't waste the opportunity to make moves for yourself. Become the best of both worlds. Otherwise, you don't know what you got 'til it's gone."_

* * *

**Didn't expect this chapter to be as long as it ended up being. Not as long as chapter six, but second longest. Kinda funny that the longest chapters ended up going to Bonnie and Foxy respectively.**

**So yeah, Foxy in my opinion was the total package when it came to his Survivor run this season. He said what his goal was and I think he lived up to his own expectations pretty well. He was even the second main antagonist right behind Shadow the Hedgehog, and comparing them, Foxy had a bigger chance at the money since his social game is much stronger than Shadow's. Kinda funny on how his first comment about Foxy was that he should have been the one sent to Exile Island instead of Shovel Knight again lol. Now he is completely thankful that Foxy and him were in the same alliance. Things weren't as successful as they hoped, but at least they tried to do something. He seems to be the most popular FNAF character for this story, so I think the captain would be proud lol.**

**Questions:**

**1\. What do you think of Foxy's game?**

**2\. What would have happened if all members of the Pirate Crew (Shadow, Foxy, Bonnie, Freddy, and Knuckles) actually made it to the final five?**

**If you like Foxy, better hurry up and vote for him if you haven't already. Because of me being late, today is the absolute last day to vote on your favorite characters on the poll on my profile. But besides that, watch my YouTube intro if you haven't already and I'll see you guys in the next chapter whenever I'm finished with it!**

**(News flash: _Now_ Foxy has the longest chapter for this fic lol)**


	9. Chapter 9: Juror 9

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 9 - Juror 9

**Hello, everyone. This is KoopalingFan here (even though my name is only the way it is because it's what I've been known for so long lol). Welcome back to another chapter of the sub-Ponderosa series. Most of you might already know, but as of last Wednesday, the main fic has ended, so you probably already know who the next juror is this time. ...But then again, those of you that have read up to the chapter where the ninth juror has been eliminated (assuming that you actually chose to not ignore all the spoiler warnings), you would know who this chapter belongs to anyway.**

**Though the main fic might be over, this isn't. Besides, this can be good for people that are trying to catch up, so here we are. Therefore, these next two chapters will be the absolute last chapters for this Emperors vs Knights era. And then when they're posted, the clock will start ticking for the next time, and I can't wait!**

**Let's get to it!**

**~KF**

* * *

_"Hello there! I am Shovel Knight, juror number nine. Welcome all to my Ponderosa!"_

* * *

**Night 37**

* * *

"Whew... What an amazing experience..."

_"I have never been truly amazed by an adventure such as this since... I suppose my last adventure before Shield Knight before I came out here. That alone is not enough to describe what an amazing game this is. And yet, I suppose my time out here has come to an end. I am truly saddened that I have made it just short, though I suppose the grand prize is meant for someone else. ...And whoever wins it all, I wish you good luck."_

Shovel Knight made his way down the path as he continued to travel away from the Tribal Council. Judging by his overall thoughts and feelings, it was certain that Survivor was simply not just another adventure that he chose to go through.

"Truly something I will never forget if I do say so myself. Other than becoming the Sole Survivor of course, I wished to generally enjoy myself out here even though I was already aware of the harsh realities when it came to living off of the land... Yet at least I did know how to start a fire. But other than that, anything but simple. However, I even received even more than what I requested to get out of this experience... I've made truly close relationships with others, surprisingly won a couple challenges, found and play an immunity idol successfully, and have made it all the way to fifth place. That milestone alone in its own way is a major accomplishment in my book. And the best part of it all, in a cut throat competition such as this, I've always stayed true to myself. I do not know if changing myself completely and going down a more villainous path just to win a million dollars would be a satisfying conclusion in my honest opinion..."

_"Fifth place is generally... a great place to most people! I shall keep my head up high and enjoy my time at the Ponderosa for a couple days... And then, I will finally return home and reminisce the wonderful times I've had out here with Shield Knight as well as the rest of my new friends when this season reaches the surface..."_

Calmly making his way into the medical tent, he met Master Hand's brother for the first time prior to the game commencing.

"Greetings, Crazy Hand!"

"...Oh!" The hand giggled a bit. "Normally I am the one that greets you guys first, so this is kinda funny! But, hello, Shovel Knight! We meet again, and from the looks of it, you don't seem to bad!"

"I thank you." He nodded. "...Although, I have not taken a glance at a mirror yet for so long... I still seem to be a bit anxious about that... I'd rather not look _too_ terrible."

"You look far from it." The Survivor staff member assured him. "Now, let's get started on your checkup..."

_"Even though I went out in fifth place, perhaps it was meant to be for me and Sheik to go after each other in the end. We were close allies after all. We still stuck together after the Greninja vote, but then when it came down to it, we were both the biggest threats remaining... It was... actually a bit fun to see who would prevail... So if Sheik is meant to win this game, I am greatly looking forward to it if I feel that she is the one who I need to vote for as a juror."_

"Alright, Shovel Knight. You weighed 92.9 pounds before this game started." Crazy Hand recalled. "What does the scale say?"

"84.3..." He blinked at the number.

"That is exactly 8.6 pounds in total." He wrote on his clipboard. "I shall have this in your records. You ready to move out?"

He sighed. "A bit of relief. Thought I have lost a bit more than that, so this is fine... Oh, yes. I am ready to meet the others. They are already waiting for my arrival. Let me gather my belongings."

_"I just couldn't wait to reunite with some of my old friends that were on the jury. Of course, Greninja is the one that I was looking forward to the most... in spite of me simply letting him go, knowing that I had a grand opportunity to save him... It was as if a reliable and close ally perishes right in front of your eyes, knowing that you could have easily prevented him from dying..." He then sighed shaking his head rapidly. "Okay, that is a rather extreme comparison... I'm sure Greninja understood my opinions for the sake of my own game. I was not ready to have my fate be decided by a rock, nor did I even expect Marth to turn..."_

Shovel Knight was now on his way to the cafe after leaving the boat that dropped him off.

"Is there anyone out here!?"

"You can see us from right here, Shovel Knight!" Shulk's voice was heard from a distance. "Come on aboard! Everyone simply can't wait to see you!"

"Alright, then!" The shovel wielder actually began to run. "I will not keep any of you waiting any longer!"

_"It was rather heart warming seeing every last one of them. There were people that I've started with, people that I've never truly met, and people that have stuck with me for a while. And despite the different types of relationships that I've had with different people, every last one of them at least thought of me to some extent."_

Foxy was the first to shake his head out of respect. "I think I should be the one that shake your hand first. I did get voted off right before you did, after all."

"Well, if you think that it is only right, then you have my thanks."

As his back was turned talking with the fox, he out of nowhere received a big hug from the Pokemon himself.

"You're here!"

"...Greninja?" He turned around blinking somewhat surprised. "You scared me! Don't startle me like that again!"

He only chortled in reply. "Throughout all the days I've spent with you on the island, seeing you scared of all people, quite hilarious to see in my opinion."

"I... I-I was not!" His smaller friend glared. "I was just... surprised... that's all..."

"Simply not admitting that you were frightened is the oldest trick in the book." commented Shadow.

"I was just caught off guard!"

"...Heh." The hedgehog actually smirked. "Perhaps the Pokemon was right. The sight of you being rather more tense than usual is something that is a bit interesting to watch, I'll admit."

_"Shovel Knight seems to get a lot of praise out here." The anthropomorphic Mobian noted. "And I actually understand why. He actually takes the time to get to know pretty much everyone... Even such as ones who are described as... 'not nice.' Not saying that I'm a nice or... 'terrible' person or whatever... I mean, I typically don't open up to people unless they are generally curious, and if I feel as if it wouldn't hurt to let ones know of how I feel... And with Shovel Knight,... I actually feel rather comfortable doing that."_

Upon him finishing greeting everyone, Freddy wrapped a friendly arm around his shoulder

"Ready?"

"Ready to eat?" He assumed, heading inside the cafe.

"No, silly." Roy shook his head. "We're going to re-introduce you to the mirror first, and then we'll all eat. It's part of the Ponderosa routine at this point, so tonight it is simply your turn to have a glance at yourself."

"..." He was now doing just that. "I don't think I've looked homeless before... This is embarrassing. If this is the true reason of why Marth got rid of me, then I do not blame him one bit."

"Yeah, I get the joke, by I highly doubt people vote each other off by their looks." Greninja doubted laughing. "And to be honest, if someone has actually done that, I would really like to know who."

"Not anyone that I know of." Shulk denied.

"It would be the worst strategy of all time to vote people off based off their appearance." Foxy added. "But anyway, enough chit chat. Sit down, Shovel Knight. We gotta feed you."

_"Even though I betrayed Shovel Knight when the Pirate Crew attempted to get rid of Shovel Knight's number one ally, Luigi, by the time he actually left thanks to Marth and even Sheik herself of all people, I am still saddened to see him go. Literally everyone here has his own reason to why they rooted for Shovel. I wouldn't have been surprised if he got the votes. His social game is fabulous. But it's not just that; he was one of the easier guys to get along with out there. Perhaps his existence on the Chatan tribe was one of the reasons to why their morale was so high when it came to the challenges... even as going as far as having Cloud as a first boot from the tribe of all people..."_

"Make yourself at home, Shovel." Knuckles spoke. "Be glad that you at least didn't get eliminated by your name."

He smirked, sitting down at the end of the table. "Now _that_ would have been a downright shame if my game ended in that way. That is rather worse than sending others to the jury based off how dirty and clean they look."

"Well, whenever you're gonna clean yourself tonight," Bonnie spoke. "I'm sure you can't wait to clean your plate when your food gets here."

And it did eventually. He ordered a bacon burger, french fries, onion rings, and a whole pizza that set next to it.

"..." Knuckles eyed from the food to Shovel Knight at least thrice. "Okay... Of course you're not gonna eat all of this in one sitting..."

"You might be right." He admitted, taking a bit of his burger first. "I only choose multiple food items because I should at least taste every last one of them... Well,... rice is actually on the menu. However, I am sure that it is the absolute last item I would order. Hopefully _none _ of you ordered that."

They all either shook their head or spoke a verbal 'no' as an answer.

_"When it comes to socially adapting to others, I guess me and Shovel Knight are quite similar at that." Freddy assumed. "People view the both of us as being friendly, willing to bond with anyone if we're approached, or to bond with anyone in order to have a strategic relationship, as well as a relationship that can last outside the game. So I can easily understand where he is coming from. Maybe I was the Shovel Knight on my tribe, and he was probably the Freddy on his tribe... Kind of a shame that we never go to align with one another. But then again, it's basically the Foxy vs Sheik situation. Maybe even Bonnie and Luigi are similar as well..._

_The bear then chuckled a bit. "Greninja and Knuckles though? Completely different in strategy and personality."_

"So Shovel," A curious Greninja had a question in mind. "what was it like for you and Sheik to go after each other?"

"Well, like I said,..." He spoke between bites. "it was sort of awkward knowing that it was me against her at the time, even though it took forever for us to separate. We shook on it, and we allowed ourselves to play the game within the best of our ability... Had I known better though, I would have eliminated her at six... Yet I didn't know for sure if she was really coming after me. Say if she wasn't and I went after her instead, I would have eliminated her for no reason..."

"Oh well, then." Greninja took a bite of his own food. "Maybe I should have been the glue that held everybody together. Now poor Luigi is all on his own... But then again, I highly doubt he is actually on the bottom. Sheik is public enemy number one at this point."

"That is most likely the case." He nodded in agreement. "Luigi would be just fine. It is safe to say that he is going to the end no matter what."

"Would Zelda get there as well?" Knuckles wondered. "...And what about Marth?"

_"Of course it was nice for us to all sit down and have a nice meal together as a Survivor family. It was my night and I think it was a good one. Everyone had quite a few questions about how things went on when I was still out there. But my prediction for the final four is that Luigi (hopefully) has the biggest chance of making it to the end. I like Sheik as well, yet I doubt that she has a major chance of getting to the finals. ...Yet if she somehow wins the final immunity challenge (which she is physically capable enough to do so), then the final juror could be either Marth or Zelda."_

With Shovel Knight saying his goodbyes for the time being, he was now entering the door of his new home for the next two days before his departure from Kodai Island.

_"And now, it is time to get myself together. I am quite curious of what Ponderosa has to bring."_

* * *

**Day 38**

* * *

It was at that point the second to last day of the Survivor - Emperors vs Knights season. Just the thought of it was enough to motivate Shovel Knight to rather not wake up so late. He desired to enjoy his limited time at Ponderosa for as much as possible.

Like most jurors, the cafe was the first thought that arrived in his mind.

"Food..."

The only other character that was in the cafeteria at the time was Freddy Fazbear. And since he was eyeing his menu as he sat by the table, it was a possibility that he probably woke up not too long before Shovel Knight.

"Greetings, Fazbear! Do you assume that all of the others are still asleep?"

"Oh, hello, Shovel! I guess so." He shrugged in reply. "Guess it'll be just the two of us for right now. ...They'd better get here soon. This is day thirty-eight, you know. It's not going to last forever just like this whole Survivor thing."

"True, true. Though I suppose since it is us two alone, perhaps it is a good opportunity for us to chat."

He grinned at that. "That would be cool. What's on your mind?"

_"I don't know how these people manage to get up so early at Ponderosa right after they've been voted off." Bonnie Roberts wondered. "Now me, I'm not a morning person. You know it's not early to bed, early to rise the morning after here. But Shovel Knight woke up before most of us did apparently, haha. Seriously. How does he do it?"_

And yet that morning, Roberts actually had a hard time sleeping that night for some reason. So he decided to join in the conversation Shovel and Freddy were already having.

"Hey, guys."

"Oh, you're unexpectedly early today." Freddy said.

"Couldn't sleep that well, but good thing I'm here 'cause I needed to tell Shovel Knight something that Greninja forgot to tell you. Something about him wanting to talk to you above your Loved Ones from home?"

_"Since Shovel Knight was known to tell a bunch of stories around the campfire back at camp, I figured that some point today maybe we could share some stories of our own to each other to past the time, since I never actually talked to anyone about Calem that much, other than the fact that he saved my life. And no, it was not because I was worried that it would make me a threat. I just... never thought about him speaking of him often while I was out there... and I actually feel guilty a little. If Shovel can open up about Shield Knight, what's my problem?"_

_-/-_

And later on in the morning, the two were now involved in the conversation that they both actually always wanted, sitting at the table with one another ignoring the ocean that was in the distance as Shadow, Knuckles, and Foxy were all seen racing each other along the sand.

"Alright, so who's going first?"

The Pokemon laughed. "I think I earned every right to go first considering on how I never really opened up about Calem. You should be even pushing me to do it."

"Oh, really?" He laughed back at him "That is rather rude, to be honest. I'd rather not push or force someone to speak about something before the next person if it is not necessary."

"Well, it's how I owe you, you know? I don't really mind that much, so let's get started..." Yet when he was about to speak, his mind surprisingly went blank. "If only I knew exactly where to start, now that I think about it... You're the master at telling stories. Got any ideas on where I could begin?"

"That's a good question. When it comes to me telling stories of myself and Shield, if I can not come up with anything on the spot, I try to head back to most recent times."

"Sounds good. Let's see..." He placed a finger beneath his chin. "Maybe I could start... Oh, I guess a nice place to start is his advice to me before coming out here... Sorry... That's kinda predictable..."

"Anywhere is a good start. Really." Shovel Knight disagreed. "Go ahead."

"I really need to get good at this, but okay. I'll start. Now obviously, he told me that there's gonna be this whole manipulation thing out here and all. It's what to expect, especially when it comes to these days."

_"Greninja is the closest fellow survivor that I have out here so far. We've learned quite a bit about each other for the weeks we've been out on the island together... Though I guess Greninja felt that he never really did enough due to him not telling me much about his relationship with Calem that much... I mean, I never found it to be a problem. It is not as if I was begging him to open up about that bond that much. Not everyone needs to tell everyone about everything if it is rather personal. Though if he really desires to tell about his bond with Calem because of me telling him about Shield, then of course I am not stopping him."_

"He told me that I could play however I wanted, as long as I knew how to not just get to the end, but to get to the end and win..." He recalled. "So... Basically that I could even be a villain if I wanted, as long as I did it right... I mean, not that I had... not to say that I was completely against the whole villain thing, but... I wanted to bring my full self to the table. I'd feel terrible if I ever had to go down that route, you know? Even though it's a game, these are real people that you're playing with. It's not like I don't have any emotions..."

"Well, even if you had to betray me, I would not have any hostility towards you whatsoever."

"You wouldn't? You'd have every right to."

"I am still learning about how strategy works in a game of Survivor, since in all honesty, the strategic aspect of the game was never my first priority. Having simply a good adventure out here was more important in my book... But you constantly gave me advice of how people normally behaved. Taught me how to stay on my toes... So even if you slit my throat, I would still applaud you. You have already proven to be a rather smart individual as well as Sheik."

"..." He widened his eyes a bit. "I did...? I mean, of course everyone here knows I'm a big fan of the show, but... that was pretty much it. Me talking about how the contestants were on previous seasons and everything... Did I really help you _that_ much?"

"Greninja, listen to me..." The wielder of a rather unusual weapon of defense wanted to make himself clear. "If it wasn't for you,... I would have more likely played that idol on you with pure instinct... Not a guarantee, but it would have been a rather huge possibility that I would have played it on you, especially since I had no idea that Marth was about to turn."

"None of us did..."

"_Exactly_." He nodded slowly. "If I would have played that idol on you with Marth already jumping ship, there would have been more votes as zero, we all would have stuck to our alliances, we would have been tied, and then we all would have went to rocks... All this means that if I played it, it all would have been my fault to why someone would have had to be eliminated by a rock..."

"..." The only Pokemon of the show never knew exactly what to say at first. "Wow... I... Thank you..."

"I should be the one saying thanks!" Shovel Knight chortled. "You saved me from making a rather foolish mistake! Had I done it,... not only would I have faced public humiliation,... I wouldn't have known how to live with myself, knowing that things would have turned out differently, which it actually did. Sure I basically betrayed you, but... it was the only way, and I am sorry. You never even had to betray anyone. Not even Sheik."

"Okay, a couple things to say here. First of all, you went from praising me from teaching you about the strategic side of modern Survivor to you now feeling guilty about you not saving my life, both of us knowing that it was only right to just let me go and have my walk to Ponderosa. You have nothing to feel guilty about." He shook his head. "And second, I... thanks, Shovel. I guess I helped you unintentionally, didn't I?"

He giggled once more. "Perhaps you could be my teacher for that aspect of the game."

-/-

_"What else can I say about my Survivor experience that hasn't already been said already? I feel like I've done everything but win, which I am happy with either way. Like I said, fifth place isn't bad at all. I have a lot to tell Shield Knight when I get back home, by just stuff that happened after the Loved Ones visit occurred alone... I hope she doesn't mind... I don't want to talk to her to death, you know? Perhaps I can warn her so that she can let me know when to stop talking... But anyway, what an experience. I couldn't have asked for anything better."_

He was now taking out Freddy and Bonnie to go out fishing by the dock.

"I learned a thing or two about fishing." Freddy commented. "Just don't expect anything special."

"Oh, you'll get the hang of it! The more you practice, the better off you'll be, as long as you have patience!"

"Something that is not Shadow the Hedgehog's middle name." Bonnie joked, causing everyone else to laugh in return.

_"I've made close friends, adapted strategically and socially, and even won a couple challenges... Can't say they were the most physical, but at least it was something! Perhaps I could be a challenge beast like Knuckles or Foxy even if there is a next time. Though otherwise, I feel like this experience was more than enough for me anyway, even if I am not asked to come back out here. I'd like to thank Master Hand, Crazy Hand, the whole production crew, all nineteen of my Survivor competitors, and most of all,... I of course would not even be out here had it not been for Shield Knight who gave me the okay to be out here. Life without you is rather unimaginable."_

* * *

**To be honest, I didn't expect this chapter to be as long as some of the others at all. At one point I had no idea what to do with Shovel Knight. Though ever since I decided to have him talk with Greninja, I guess I really got into it lol. I felt really good writing about that part, since Shovel Knight bonded with Sheik more on the island since he was with her longer than Greninja, so I guess this makes up for it.**

**Well, nine chapters down, only one more chapter to go, then this era can finally come into a close. It might be a big wait for you guys until the new era gets started. As said in the main fic, the first chapter of the pre-season will probably be released on April 29th. So if you need something new out of this era, this is the best things are gonna get for now lol.**

**Questions:**

**1\. What do you think of Shovel Knight and his game?**

**2\. What do you think about the relationships he has built with others on the island, especially his closet allies?**

**Since the poll is now closed, I guess that's now out of the way. So you guys can watch the intro of this season on YouTube if you have not already done so. So I guess I'll see you all in the last chapter!**


	10. Chapter 10: Juror 10

Emperors vs Knights - Ponderosa

Chapter 10 - Juror 10

**Well,... I guess this is ****_really_**** it this time lol. I am posting this on March 29, 2020, meaning that this is officially the final day of the Survivor - Emperors vs Knights era. This has been my best era so far in my opinion. Not to call Kodai Island bad or anything at all. But this era is superior because the meet the cast fic wasn't rushed, there is generally even more detail in the stories, more character development, and even though making these Ponderosa chapters can be a bit repetitive at times, I've put even more thought into them than ever before.**

**I'd like to thank everyone of you that took time out of your days to read this, the pre-season fic, and the main story for this era. Some of you that have been with me since the beginning (the Kodai Island days) are still around as well! Though sadly, all good things must come to an end. Although, if it isn't obviously already, season three will start likely on April 29, 2020, so literally a month away. The pre-season chapters for the season are done, so they will be ready. I'm also currently trying to put the YouTube intro together. (Want it to be even better than both of my other intros for the two seasons that I've already published here)**

**Alright, with that being said, here is the final chapter for this mini-Ponderosa series, and the final chapter for the entire Emperors vs Knights era. I hope you enjoy it!**

**~KF**

* * *

_"Hello, I'm Sheik, juror number ten, and this is my Ponderosa!"_

* * *

**Night 38**

* * *

"Well, I guess I conclude the jury..."

Sheik the ninja was just confirmed to be the official final member of the jury for Survivor - Emperors vs Knights, whether she was fond of that title or not. Nonetheless, she was making her way down the path on the way to Crazy Hand's tent, the thoughts flowing in her head within every step she took.

_"Juror number ten, haha! I really can't believe it. Of course initially, part of me felt a little upset that I fell just short of making it to the end of the game where I would have sat in the final three facing the jury, only to become **part** of the jury last second. However, just moments later, I was honestly amazed that I've made it this far. It's basic math. Not many people make it to the final four of Survivor, so this accomplishment alone will stay with me for the rest of my life."_

"I socially adapted with the tribe, I made some big strategic moves,..." She recalled the events of her game. "and then, I won a couple challenges. So at least it is safe to say that I did something in all three different aspects of the game... No wonder why I was such a threat to being voted off."

Opening up the medical tent, there was the beloved Crazy Hand.

"Hi."

"Hiya, Sheik!" He pulled a chair out from a corner. "Sit right here and we'll talk about your Survivor game!"

_"I've really learned a lot out here. Spending thirty-eight days on Survivor was well worth it. I have met different types of people, and I appreciate every last one of them for being part of my Survivor life. ...Hopefully Impa is proud of me even though I was just short of making it... But then again, she's one of those people that is proud of someone no matter what, anyway, haha!"_

"Now go ahead and step on the scale for me..."

She did was she was told. "...109.9..."

"And weighed 120.7, which means that you've lost exactly 10.9 pounds, Sheik." He took notes on the clipboard.

"Hmm... Seems decent enough..."

_"I was... actually not mad about my weight that much. I didn't expect to lose that much anyway, so I guess I'm fine..."_

"Alright, I'm outta here." Impa's student made her exit and left the tent. "Bye, Crazy Hand!"

-/-

She took her time getting off the boat and onto the dock, even waving to the driver before he took off.

_"To be honest, I was actually kind of anxious just a little bit of what my perception was from the jury and how they were going to react when they saw me approaching them. I mean, I voted every one of those people out except for Greninja, so I kinda had no idea what to expect to be honest."_

And yet the moment she came into the view, most of the jury either cheered on or made their way over to her first.

"I'm here, guys!"

Greninja, Shulk, and Roy walked with her as they made it to the steps to meet up with everyone else.

"We welcome to Ponderosa!" Shovel Knight grinned happily from behind his mask. "We are very much eager to spend this time with you. This is your night, and you are the guest of honor!"

_"On paper, it does seem a bit strange to praise Sheik even after she betrayed me and tried to vote me out before." said Shovel Knight. "Yet nonetheless, it was great to see her. Perhaps she still would have earned my vote regardless. She's played an amazing game, so I was a bit saddened that she had to go..."_

"Just right this way..." Freddy motioned her as the ninja made her way in the cafe. "I'm not leading you to the table yet, I'm afraid, even though I'm in a position where I can serve you in real life..."

"But that's only because you must look at your reflection, first." Bonnie explained.

"..." She sighed and facepalmed. "I look like a mess... Nobody ever told me I got voted off due to my physical appearance. Buuut I think I understand, now..."

"Well, I bet you'd want something to eat, first!" Roy suggested, Freddy pulling a chair out to allow her to sit. "Have a look at the menu, and we can talk a bit."

_"Me and Sheik are just the same." Foxy shook his head with a smirk. "As I said before, the only difference between us was that we were in completely different alliances. Yet when it came to strategy and everything else, we're just alike. We both bonded with our allies, we won challenges, and we led our alliances through the game. Sheik's alliance ended up winning the war against the now defeated Pirate Crew, even though she was the final sacrifice needed so that Luigi, Zelda, and Marth can move on..."_

_He sighed. "Maybe she'd vote for Zelda so that her sacrifice was not in vain or something..."_

"So tell me. How do you honestly feel about your game, Sheik?" Shulk asked, yet his face appeared to be rather saddened by her former tribemate's elimination. "Surely it must be a shame that you were hours away from reaching the finals, even though you should be proud of yourself, anyway..."

"I mean, you know what, to be honest, the most saddening part about it is... You know what, it was the final immunity challenge." She answered. "It was a maze type of challenge. So, you know? Anyone could have won that. Marth ended up barely beating Luigi. I mean... _Shadow_, what do I do for a living?"

"You're a ninja..." He blinked.

"Exactly." It became apparent that she was attempting at making a point. "That should have given me the advantage. The _one_ thing I was good at that could have helped me win this challenge, and I just _had_ to not win, especially knowing that Impa had me practice with blindfolds and everything. But yeah, that's what I'm mad about the most. It'll haunt me for the rest of my life, but don't worry. I can live with that."

"The way you are wording it a bit is a bit concerning, but I suppose you'll be alright." Shovel Knight said.

_"I mean, I am not afraid to give credit where it's due." Knuckles stated. "Me and Sheik didn't always get along, but... **man**. She was real serous out there. She played her heart out and she worked her **butt** off. If she was sitting in that final three, there would have been no competition in my book. She already would have won my vote, and probably the vote of almost everyone else here, especially from Shovel Knight and Greninja... But then again, if she could have earned my vote, then she could have won everyone over, hahaha! ...Except for maybe Marth, but that's a different story, especially since he's one of the finalists right now..."_

The group was amaze at the food that was place in front of Sheik. First a lobster, then parmesan chicken, and finally a few quesadillas.

"Rivaling me again, I see..." Foxy shook his head, eyes remaining focus on the amount of food that was in front of her. "I hope you're hungry, Sheik. That's all I gotta say..."

-/-

"Alright, everyone. I'll be up early tomorrow to enjoy my one day here!"

_"If I actually got voted off earlier, there would have been no second thoughts of me sleeping late. But since I'm the final member of the jury, I literally only have one day here. I'd rather not spend it by sleeping. So, I'm getting up at sunrise. Luckily for me, I'm kinda used to not getting enough sleep at this point, so just one more day of not getting a full night's sleep. And then when I get home, maybe I can finally relax a little. But for this experience, and spending time with my friends, it is all worth it, so I really can't wait for day thirty-nine over here!"_

She closed the door of her temporary home.

* * *

**Day 39**

* * *

It was time for Sheik to begin experiencing her final day on the island, as well as her first and last day at Ponderosa.

As promised, she was up bright and early not too long after the sun rose high in the sky. While the final three was out on the island having breakfast, the jury already had their own food at the cafe to eat.

However, to her surprise as she made it in, most of the jurors were already at the table, some of them already eating the food that was place down in front of their faces.

"...Huh?" She was surprised and confounded at the same time. "Wow, haha! Everybody seems to already be here even though I said that I was going to be up early today!"

"Bonnie and Shadow aren't here yet." Freddy was one of the people that was already consuming his breakfast. "But we're already here because we wanna enjoy our final day in Japan here, too."

"Well, guess you're right about that." Sheik shrugged it off. "I'll go ahead and sit down and talk while we're here. Hopefully Bonnie and Shadow will be here in a few."

_"So, I guess this is it, huh?" Shulk heaved a sigh. "This is our official final day on Survivor. I mean, sure we're not part of the main game, but we're still on the island. When you're on the jury, you at least get to spend the rest of the game somewhere on the island. Main game or not. The pre-jurors were the ones that had to leave early, but the ten of us were lucky to make it far enough. So I believe that every single person that gets to be on a future jury in Survivor should be proud of themselves. And also, we're all together sharing each other's experiences. All we gotta do is enjoy day thirty-nine, and then we'll all face the final three when it's time to head to Tribal Council."_

Eventually, both the hedgehog and the bunny showed to reunite with everyone else by the time Sheik's food came out to her, which happened to be strawberry pancakes, bacon, and hash browns with coffee on the side.

"So, I guess we can talk about the final three..." Knuckles spoke up. "They're probably all getting ready to go to treemail right now."

"I agree." Shulk replied. "I gotta say we got a great final three heading into tonight. All three of them played different games from one another. Marth played like the emperor, Luigi played like the knight, and Zelda... she..."

"She was kind of like an emperor as well." Roy thought out loud. "But..."

"I think she was more like a knight knowing her story." Bonnie replied glancing at his menu. "And even so,..."

"...Why not both?"

With nearly everyone turning to Sheik, they all exchanged glances with one another and slowly agreed the more they thought about it.

"I guess a hybrid between an emperor and a knight it is." She laughed in reaction.

"But I gotta say. I'm really proud of Zelda, you know?" The original Chatan member spoke breaking apart her pancakes with her knife and fork. "I mean, of course this is coming from the one that spent a lot of time with her and everything, but still. She has really came a long way."

"I'd say that Luigi came a long way as well." Shovel Knight added. "Even I am shocked that he made it to the finals, let alone outlasting everyone on his original tribe."

"I agree." Bonnie bobbed his head up and down. "He may not be the most aggressive player, but at least he outlasted all the other knights. I'm pretty sure _no one_ expected that!"

"Hmph..." Shadow mumbled, yet loud enough so people would still hear. "I figured he was going to the end no matter what if he was never voted off... I'm trying to recall if he has done anything in particular that would make me vote for him... Zelda hid behind Sheik for the final half of her game, and Marth's doing ten million things at once."

"So in other words, you don't really know who to vote for." Foxy concluded for him.

"Not just that, but I also do not know how to vote at all."

"I suppose this just goes back to how diverse the gameplays were with the final three." said Greninja.

_"I guess we're in for a big night when we go to tribal..." Freddy said with a sigh. "It's a shame that we're not allowed to bring any popcorn or anything. We're gonna be there for a while."_

"So how long are we going to be there tonight?" Shovel Knight wondered.

"Normally final tribal lasts between two to three hours." Greninja told him. "They just edit out most of it and keep all the good parts for the episode."

"Eh... I don't blame 'em..." Knuckles did not seem to mind. "Who wants to watch us talk for two hours?"

"Well, I guess if some people of the Survivor community could watch it, I think they honestly would." The Pokemon assumed. "There are some really devoted fans out there. However, I am pretty sure we all know the hardest part of it all is that we are only allowed to give one person the million dollars... I mean, I know that they know that it is part of the game, but still..."

Watching him hang his head down out of a bit of guilt, Roy understood where he was coming from. "That I completely agree with. If we could, I would give all three of them the title of..."

...

In response to Roy's sudden pause in the middle of his sentence, a few of his fellow jurors chortled in reaction.

"You stopped at just the right time." Bonnie Roberts pointed. "Though we'd want to give everyone the money, at the same time it completely undermines the significance of the title of the Sole Survivor."

-/-

A little while later, Sheik was able to have one on one time with Greninja, the two of them sitting on the dock with their legs dangling over the edge.

"...Sheik?"

"Yeah?"

"...I'm sorry."

She almost immediately squinted her eyes in confusion. "For what...?"

"..." The Pokemon glanced at her directly and smirked. "I forgot to give you my thanks for avenging me last night."

"Oh..." She laughed out loud at that. "I knew you were already silent thanking me, anyway... But I mean, I was really mad that you left actually. It may not have shown on the exterior, but inside I was fuming. Not just because you were my ally, but you generally deserved to stay in the game."

"...And I guess that was what motivated you to play Marth like a 'savage.'"

"'Savage?'"

He snickered greatly. "Well, that was what Knuckles said."

"Well," And she snickered back. "what I can say is that the move was not only made to protect Zelda, but also to get revenge on Marth for flipping and voting you off. I am not lying when I said that I had no plans on you being out of the picture at ten. I needed you, and you needed me."

"...Uh, I beg to differ because you've made so much progress even without my help." Greninja denied. "Maybe it was me that needed you more than you needed me..."

"Greninja, don't talk like that." She immediately shook her head. "We were both equals in this when we first started. We talked with one another to the point where we became number one allies in the game, and then we recruited Shovel Knight and Luigi. We were even together when the tribe swap happened."

"I guess you're right." He rubbed his head, staring back at his feet just above the water. "We both needed each other just as much... So,..."

"So what? What do you wanna talk about?"

"...How was Impa at the Loved Ones visit?"

"Oh yeah, _her_..."

_"Other than both of us being ninjas in our own right, both me and Sheik have someone we look up to as our... our **teachers**. That's how I'm going to put it." Greninja talked. "I mean, I would call Impa a trainer, but Sheik is clearly not a Pokemon last time I checked."_

"She just told me to keep going. She was pleased I've made to eight of course, and... even though I didn't win, she'll probably be proud of me, anyway." Now Sheik was looking away. "Kind of amazing that she's known me since I was a kid..."

"Yeah, that's pretty neat. Just like Calem found me when I was a Froakie..." Silence controlled him for a few moments. "How did Impa took notice of you? I don't think you've ever told me that."

"She realized how inspired I was by constantly watching her. First she taught me some moves and everything, and then after a while, she officially took me in as her student showing me all her tricks. Years later, here I am."

"Oh, nice! Seems similar to how Calem took me in. Only difference is that he had to take me in immediately since I was freezing to death..."

"Hey," She turned back to him with a hand on his shoulder. "at least you will never have to worry about that ever again, right?"

"Right... I've been moved on, anyway."

Hearing footsteps, both of them turned to find Shovel Knight.

"Hello, you two! Care to fish with me?"

With the two looking at one another, they glanced back at their friend with smiles.

"Well, why not?" Sheik was looking forward to it.

-/-

_"Yes, it still pains me of the fact that I had to be the last person to go in order for the final three to advance, but I'm slowly getting over it, even though I have to watch myself now on television when this season airs officially. People have been final jurors before, so I guess that makes it a bit better. And besides, my time felt complete, anyway. So if this is the only season I get to play, I at least have the closure I needed to conclude my experience... Not that I don't **want** to come back, haha!"  
_

"Luckily I've had prior experience to fishing with Impa back in the day, so hopefully this wouldn't be so difficult."

Greninja however felt a little uncertain. "...Um,... I never was an expert at it, even when we were on the island... Can you two show me the basics?"

"Hahaha!" She laughed in response. "Aw, poor guy. Don't worry. We'll help you out."

_"Also, I still get to be a part of this beautiful Ponderosa when all these amazing people that I've connected with, whether we were all in the same alliance or not. But the best part of it all is that I literally have to have a hand in who gets the million dollars as well as the title of the Sole Survivor. So I believe that it is fun in its own right. And when all of this ends, there isn't without a doubt that this adventure will always have a special place in my heart for the rest of my days."_

* * *

***Sighs* Finally done...**

**I apologize. This ended up taking longer than expected, but I actually wanted to get the pre-season chapters done for Survivor - Mexico first just to get those out of the way. Now I can officially start making the main story for it!**

**But anyway, this Ponderosa series is now completed, which means the Survivor - Emperors vs Knights era has officially come to an end. I already gave my thanks and all in the main story, but I shall do so again of course. Thank you all for your support now only throughout this era, but for my entire series so far. I've only started to become a fan of Survivor back in 2017 where I found an episode by accident on television and now look where I am lol. Kodai Island was released in order to just try things out, but with this I've decided to make a full blown series, so expect more from me when it comes to this series for a while.**

**Of course I have other stories, but I gotta say that with this series, I am now reaching new heights with my stories thanks to this. I now have my longest story ever "Survivor - Emperors vs Knights", most reviewed story ever "Survivor - Emperors vs Knights", most reviewed story ever in the Game X-Over x Super Smash Brothers section, "Survivor - Emperors vs Knights", most chapters for any of my stories "Survivor - Kodai Island", my second most viewed fic of all time "Survivor - Kodai Island", and with this series alone, according to my Legacy User Stats (it's a feature on the main site where it tells you your author stats for those who don't know), I've achieved over 500,000 words with this series alone. Seriously, you guys. Thank you. I simply never thought it would come to this.**

**So now that I am saying my official goodbyes to this era, and with the pre-season chapters for Mexico already being done, I am now officially going to start writing for "Survivor - Mexico (Brain vs Brawn vs Beauty)" in just less than an hour or so from now.**

**But for the pre-season for Survivor - Mexico, it will be titled "Mexico (Brain vs Brawn vs Beauty) - Meet the Cast" under the Game X-Over x Super Smash Brothers section as usual and it will be released on April 29th. ****(And if you still want to read something from me, I have Smash fics outside of my series. "Bow Before Your King" is the current one at the moment which features Bowser, King Dedede, and Ganondorf.)**

**Farewell! Bye for now!**


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